TPDES Permit No. WQ0004705000 (EPA I.D. No. TXS000401) STORM WATER MANAGEMENT PROGRAM ... ·...
Transcript of TPDES Permit No. WQ0004705000 (EPA I.D. No. TXS000401) STORM WATER MANAGEMENT PROGRAM ... ·...
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Permit Year 11-16
TPDES Permit No. WQ0004705000 (EPA I.D. No. TXS000401) STORM WATER MANAGEMENT PROGRAM City of Austin
SWMP FY 11-16
Table of Contents
STORM WATER MANAGEMENT PROGRAM TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. MS4 Maintenance Activities A. Structural Controls B. Floatables Program C. Roadways Program 2. Post-Construction Storm Water Control Measures A. Areas of New Development and Significant Redevelopment 1. Comprehensive Planning Process 2. Development Regulations 3. Zoning, Subdivision and Site Plan Regulations B. Flood Control Projects 1. Existing Flood Control Retrofit Program 2. Future Flood Control Review Program 3. Illicit Discharges Detection and Elimination A. Illicit and Allowable Discharges B. Detection and Elimination of Illicit Discharges C. Overflows and Infiltration D. Household Hazardous Waste and Used Motor Vehicle Fluids E. MS4 Screening and Illicit Discharge Inspections F. NPDES and TPDES Permittee List G. MS4 Map H. Spill Prevention and Response 4. Pollution Prevention/Good Housekeeping for Municipal
Operations A. Pollution Prevention/Good Housekeeping Program B. Waste Handling C. Pesticide, Herbicide and Fertilizer Application D. List of Municipal Facilities
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Table of Contents
5. Industrial and High Risk Runoff A. Industrial and High Risk Inspection Program 6. Construction Site Storm Water Runoff A. Site Development Plan Regulations B. Construction Waste C. Inspection of Sites During Construction D. Public Education for Construction Site Operators 7. Public Education and Involvement A. Public Education 1. Water Quality Education and Awareness Programs B. Public Involvement and Participation 1. Keep Austin Beautiful 2. Pollution Hotline Public Education 3. Austin Resource Recovery Public Education 4. Barton Springs Zone Specific Education 8. Monitoring Programs A. Dry Weather Screening B. Wet Weather Screening C. Industrial and High Risk Monitoring D. Water Quality and Biological Monitoring 1. Barton Springs Complex Sediment Monitoring
2. Barton Springs Complex Water Quality Monitoring 3. Environmental Integrity Index (EII) 4. Critical Environmental Feature Protection 5. Barton Creek Stormwater
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Storm Water Management Program 1. MS4 Maintenance Activities
A. Structural Controls
Introduction
The inspection and maintenance programs are part of a comprehensive drainage maintenance
plan to identify, evaluate and solve flooding, erosion and water quality problems, including
those related to non-point source pollution. The goal of the inspection and maintenance of
drainage works program is to ensure satisfactory operation of those facilities and to preserve
and enhance the quality of storm water runoff. Specific elements of the current maintenance
and inspection program are described below:
Program Activities Description
Maintenance and Inspection Activities
The City’s storm water conveyance system is composed of natural and engineered creeks and
channels, a network of drainage pipelines, and structural storm water management controls.
The Watershed Protection Department (WPD) Field Operations Division (FOD) is
responsible for the maintenance of this system, which includes a variety of activities to
ensure conveyance for storm water runoff. FOD staff removes excessive vegetation debris
and obstructions from open channels and waterways, culvert and bridge locations. The
frequency of maintenance activities varies from creek to creek and includes creek bank and
flow line stabilization projects as needed to address significant erosion. Routine vegetation
control is achieved primarily through private sector maintenance contracts.
FOD personnel also maintain storm drain pipes and inlets. They inspect, clean and repair the
system as needed throughout the year to maintain proper operation and conveyance of storm
water runoff. The frequency of routine maintenance and cleaning activities varies from
location to location based on identified needs.
WPD staff, including FOD and Watershed Engineering Department (WED), inspects storm
water structural controls associated with the residential development and City facilities
annually. Excess vegetation and any identified structural issues are addressed as necessary to
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ensure proper functionality. Storm water controls associated with commercial development
are inspected on a three year schedule, by the FOD Commercial Pond Inspectors. Any
necessary repairs identified are documented, and staff works with the responsible parties to
ensure functionality and compliance with City code and criteria.
WPD and PDRD staff are responsible for the identification and inspection of residential and
commercial storm water controls in the Barton Springs Zone, repairing non-functioning
residential ponds as necessary and ensuring compliance and enforcement of commercial
pond maintenance and repair requirements.
WPD staff will maintain the Department’s residential and commercial pond databases in
order to ensure more accurate documentation of:
pond type and function
inspection records
maintenance records
compliance records Engineering Activities
The WPD project planning process involves procedures to allow for multi-disciplinary
review of proposed projects; opportunities for flood, water quality and erosion control needs
to be addressed simultaneously (within one project) are identified and discussed prior to
project scheduling. The goal is to reduce sedimentation in receiving streams by mitigating
erosion in contributing creeks. Erosion control features are incorporated in previously
authorized flood control projects whenever that work can address both flood control and
erosion control needs simultaneously.
Public Participation
Public involvement in the inspection and maintenance programs will be provided through
customer service representatives in the WPD. Citizen complaints, inquiries and requests are
assigned to an investigator. If a solution is determined to be feasible and appropriate, the
work is assigned to a maintenance unit for action.
Critical or emergency situations are dispatched by two-way radio and pagers to a
maintenance unit for immediate attention.
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Citizen input is also received at various public meetings and forums to identify long-term
planning needs as well as current drainage problems.
Program Activities Description
The following program tasks will be performed on an annual basis to accomplish the City's
inspection and maintenance goals:
Remove debris and excessive vegetation from approximately 50 miles of open channels to maintain and improve flood flow conveyance and improve water quality.
Provide scheduled vegetation maintenance at 75% of all storm water controls identified to be the responsibility of the City of Austin.
Inspect 75% of the storm water controls identified to be maintained by the City of Austin.
Inspect 1,200 storm water controls associated with commercial development to enforce compliance with City Code.
Clear at least three miles of open waterways of sediment and obstructions in order to maintain flood flow conveyance, minimize erosion and improve water quality.
Remove debris, sediment, vegetation and obstructions from at least 500 culvert and bridge locations in order to maintain flood flow conveyance and improve water quality.
Clean at least four miles (21,120 ft.) of the storm drain pipe system annually to maintain flood flow conveyance and improve water quality.
Clean at least 2,500 storm drain inlets to maintain flood flow conveyance and remove collected sediment and other pollutants.
The inspection and maintenance program activities may be modified during the permit period
as a result of City annexations, development activity and identification of additional drainage
maintenance needs. Additional program changes may be made if efficiencies in operating
procedures or costs are realized. Significant increases to service activities that are determined
to be critical with respect to the public’s safety, health or welfare can be requested through
the City’s annual budget process to provide funding for that work.
As stated in the introduction, the City of Austin has assumed responsibility for the inspection
and maintenance of drainage infrastructure that it either owns or has the legal authority and
responsibility to maintain. The City cooperates with adjacent counties, the State of Texas,
school districts and the Lower Colorado River Authority to determine appropriate
responsibility for inspection, maintenance and operation of the local drainage infrastructure.
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B. Floatables Program
Introduction
The City of Austin’s floatables program has established collection sites at the mouth of two
urban creeks just prior to their discharge into Lady Bird Lake. Each site consists of one
boom, made of plastic material that floats at the water surface and extends across the width
of the creek to trap floating materials flowing toward the mouth of the creek. Each boom is
anchored on either shoreline to maintain its position in the creek.
Program Activities Description
The FOD staff checks the condition of each monitoring site on a weekly basis, and each site
is cleaned on a monthly basis if necessary. In addition, FOD staff checks the condition of the
sites after major storm events, and removal activities commence when the access areas to the
monitoring sites have dried sufficiently to allow the use of mechanical equipment without
damage to the surrounding ground. FOD crews remove all trapped floating material using
nets that reach the middle of the creek, allowing removal from both sides of the creeks.
Heavier material such as wet wood is pulled to the shorelines and removed with mechanical
equipment. The material removed from each site is loaded into City dump trucks, hauled to
an acceptable local landfill and measured by weight at the disposal site. The unit of
measurement is wet tons. The amount of material removed and taken to the landfill is
tabulated on a monthly basis.
Monitoring and Collection Locations
Site Selection
Site selection criteria for the floatables program were generally based on the following:
Ability to access site in a safe and secure manner
Public access to creek
Impact by urban land use activities
Suitable conditions for boom deployment and cleaning activities
Site Locations
Two urban creeks that receive storm water discharges from Austin’s MS4 are used as the
collection locations for the floatables program. See Table 6-1.
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Table 6-1. Floatables Removal Site Locations
Watershed Site No. Monitoring and Collection Site Location Land Use Shoal Creek 1 Shoal Creek at Lady Bird Lake Mixed Urban West Bouldin Creek
2 West Bouldin Creek at Lady Bird Lake Residential Urban
Site Descriptions
As noted in the site selection section, each stream used for the monitoring program has been
identified as having characteristics that would make it likely to be impacted by urban land
use activities and the associated human-generated debris. The following is a more detailed
description of each proposed stream, the characteristics of the associated drainage basins and
the site selection considerations.
Shoal Creek runs north south through the western portion of central Austin. It is 11.2
miles in length and has a drainage area of 12.9 square miles of highly urbanized development. The land-use break down for the watershed is 54% residential, 19% business, 9% civic, 6% roadways and 12% undeveloped. Shoal Creek is a highly utilized public resource that passes through several City parks and includes a Hike and Bike Trail that runs the length of the stream. This stream was selected due to the abundance of impervious cover in the watershed, the extensive amount of public use along the stream length and the potential for refuse to enter the stream. Site conditions are suitable for proper boom deployment and continuous operation.
West Bouldin Creek winds through a primarily residential area of south central Austin,
is three miles in length and has a drainage area of approximately 2.9 square miles. West Bouldin Creek passes through several parks before entering Lady Bird Lake at Auditorium Shores and has been identified by neighborhood associations as a potential location for greenbelt development. The land-use breakdown for the watershed is 69% residential, 12% business, 4% civic, 3% roadways and 12% undeveloped. This stream was selected due to the abundance of impervious cover in the watershed, the numerous public access locations along the stream, the potential for refuse associated with human activities to enter the stream and the possibility of increased public use in the future. Site conditions are suitable for proper boom deployment and continuous operation.
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C. Roadways
A. Roadways Operation and Maintenance Program
Introduction
In the effort to reduce the amount of pollutants discharged into local waterways from streets
and roadways, the City of Austin has developed a Roadways Program that addresses snow
and ice response, road repair, street cleaning, litter control, and pollutants from traffic.
Program Activities Description
Snow and Ice Response
Snow, ice, and sleet may create unsafe driving surfaces on streets and bridges. As such, the
City has developed an emergency response program that uses barricading and sanding to
effectively treat slick streets and roadways during the rare ice and snow events. During these
events Public Works Department (PWD) staff evaluates the road conditions and identifies the
streets and bridges that need to be sanded or barricaded to ensure public safety. Based on the
staff determinations, PWD sand trucks and staff are dispatched to the various locations and
appropriate treatment (sanding or barricading) is completed. Once it has been determined that
the ice or snow conditions are no longer a threat, PWD will dispatch staff to remove
barricades and start street sweeping activities in the areas where sand was used.
The PWD will continue to use the described snow management activities during the
remaining permit period, although changes to the scope of the program activities may occur
during the annual review of the program budget and effectiveness.
Road/Right of Way Maintenance and Repair
Routine maintenance of the streets, bridges, and ROW within the City of Austin are the
responsibility of the PWD. The primary maintenance functions of the Street and Bridge
Operations Division of PWD include, but are not limited to:
repairs to potholes, surface replacements and pavement failures
overlays and leveling of streets
pavement milling
crack sealing
seal coating
grading and maintenance of unpaved streets and alleys
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removal of debris from the Rights of Way (ROW)
Bridge repair and management
Utility excavation repairs, concrete structure repairs
PWD roadway maintenance projects involving excavation are completed under a General
Permit issued by the City's Planning and Development Review Department (PDRD). The
General Permit is an "umbrella” work permit issued on an annual basis to City departments
and commercial entities operating within the City's jurisdiction under inter local agreements.
These entities are typically related to utility and telecommunications services. Work covered
involves on-going repair, maintenance and some types of infrastructure extensions within the
City's planning jurisdiction. Work to be completed under a General Permit requires written
notification to the General Permit Office, including information concerning the location and
duration of the work to be performed, who will be performing the work, contact information
and the erosion and sedimentation controls to be used. The PWD General Permit requires the
use of erosion and sedimentation controls on all projects and will typically include:
Temporary inlet protection
Silt fence
Rock berms
Mulch logs and socks
Stabilized construction entrances
Work areas dewatering measures;
Seeding and sodding revegetation measures
Soil stabilization matting, as appropriate The controls to be used for each type of maintenance activity are reviewed and approved by
PDRD staff during the General Permit development process. Inspections by the projects
responsible party are also required by City Code. Public Works provides inspections of all
projects covered under the general permit. In addition to the project specific controls used,
the PWD incorporates storm water control measures at all PWD aggregate stockpile sites,
where silt fencing and/or storm water structural controls are located appropriately to provide
storm water treatment.
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PWD equipment maintenance activities are also conducted under controlled conditions at the
equipment yards. PWD staff use approved cleaning materials, good house cleaning practices,
proper waste disposal methods and other best management practices (BMP) to minimize the
occurrence of non-storm water discharges. Furthermore, the Storm Water Discharge Permit
Program (SDPP) of the WPD conducts biannual facility inspections at City of Austin fleet
maintenance locations, including the PWD maintenance facilities, to ensure appropriate
water quality protection BMPs are being used.
Over the five year permit period the PWD will continue the roadway maintenance as
described, although changes to the scope of the program activities may occur during the
annual review of the program budget and effectiveness.
Street Cleaning
Routine street cleaning in the City of Austin is the responsibility of the City’s Austin
Resource Recovery (ARR). The City of Austin Street Cleaning Program targets the cleaning
of City streets in all areas within the City limits for removal of trash, litter and dirt that has
collected in the streets and gutters for health, safety, aesthetic and water quality reasons.
Each year, this program cleans over 52,955 curb miles of streets in Austin and collects over
6300 tons of trash, leaves, debris and dirt from impervious roadway surfaces. ARR Street
Cleaning Program uses regenerative air street sweepers in its operations to clean the streets in
Austin. During the permit period, the Central Business District will be swept daily to
maximize removal efficiencies. Residential curbed streets will be swept on an average
frequency of twice per year. Other areas are swept on varying schedules depending on traffic
and need.
Changes or improvements to the Street Cleaning Program may be considered as part of the
City’s annual operating budget review. In addition, consideration may also be given to
conducting controlled studies in selected areas of the City to determine the impact of varying
street cleaning intervals on resultant storm water runoff quality.
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Litter Control
The Litter Control Program of the City of Austin is the responsibility of ARR, Litter
Abatement Division. The Litter Control Program is implemented within the City limits and
targets:
some of the City-owned property within the City limits for removal of trash, litter, and debris which has collected in the streets and the public rights-of-way
neighborhood cleanups as requested
brush and bulk pick-up approximately twice per year (Brush and Bulk Collection Program)
Clean Austin program services high need areas within the city approximately every other month
trash collection and maintenance for litter receptacles
removal of dead animals from roadways and public property
marketing of anti-littering programs in Austin
Programs to control litter are also implemented by the Collection Services Division, which
include Pay-As-You-Throw (PAYT) and Curbside Single Stream Recycling. PAYT is a
garbage collection system that aggressively encourages recycling and “smart” trash habits.
Residents are issued a 24, 32, 64 or 96 gallon wheeled plastic trash cart for their garbage,
which is collected once a week. Recyclables are collected every other week, and grass
clippings and leaves are collected weekly and taken to Hornsby Bend for composting into
“Dillo Dirt.” Periodically, there are brush and bulky pick-ups scheduled for neighborhoods
which include items such as old furniture, appliances and large tree limbs. PAYT reaches
residential and commercial customers through billboards, print ads, utility bill inserts and the
City's website.
The Curbside Single Stream Recycling Program provides biweekly collection of newspaper,
corrugated cardboard, plastic, glass bottles and jars, tin and aluminum cans and all #1
through #7 plastic containers to all households served by City garbage collection. Qualified
commercial customers located in residential neighborhoods also receive collection every
other week. The program also includes the Block Leader Program and “Recycling Right”
projects to promote public awareness and participation in the program. In addition ARR staff
works with other groups on seasonal projects such as Christmas tree recycling, and used oil
recycling.
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ARR also provides convenient recycling services to all City employees through the
workplace recycling program known as “office stream” recycle. This program is continually
evaluated to provide the most efficient service, and as a result the frequency of collection
may vary.
Program Goals During the permit period, ARR Litter Abatement Crews will complete the following tasks:
Litter containers in the downtown area will be emptied of accumulated litter daily
Litter crews will remove litter from uncurbed streets, uncurbed right-of-ways and other City property as needed
Illegal dumping of trash and waste material on public property will be removed as necessary
Dead animals on roadways will be removed, within 24 hours of being reported, six days per week
Brush and bulk items will be collected on a scheduled basis each year from residences, so that such items do not get dumped along city watercourses
Street cleaning crews will remove trash, litter and dirt that has collected in the streets and gutters on a scheduled basis
The City does not anticipate any changes to the Litter Abatement Program. However changes
to the scope of this program may be considered during review of the City’s annual operating
budget. Although the City maintains most of the roadways in the Austin area, the Texas
Department of Transportation (TxDoT) is responsible for the maintenance, cleaning and
closure management of certain State and Federal highways within the corporate limits of the
City in accordance with an interagency maintenance agreement.
The City does not anticipate any changes to the Roadways Program. However changes to the
scope of the program components may be considered during review of the City’s annual
operating budget.
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2. Post-Construction Storm Water Control Measures
A. Areas of New Development and Significant Redevelopment
One goal of the City’s land development process is to protect water quality within the City’s
jurisdiction. To that end, the City has adopted a number of planning and water quality
regulations. Among other things, the ordinances referenced in this section establish effluent
limitations and are required, at a minimum, to meet water quality standards.
1. Comprehensive Planning Process
Introduction
PDRD is responsible for comprehensive planning in the City. Comprehensive planning is
done to assure orderly growth, protect environmentally sensitive areas and maintain an
efficient infrastructure within the City’s planning jurisdiction, which is defined as the areas
within the City’s territorial and extra-territorial boundaries. Major program areas within
Austin's comprehensive planning scope include:
Implementation of the Imagine Austin Comprehensive Plan (Imagine Austin)
land use inventories and projections
demographics and population projections
neighborhood planning
The land use and population information produced by the PDRD are utilized by a number of
City departments for comprehensive planning activities. Comprehensive planning activities
are conducted by other City of Austin departments as well. These activities include, but are
not limited to the following:
Implementation of Imagine Austin through the eight identified priority program teams
Watershed, land use and natural resource studies are conducted by the WPD which is responsible for the development of water quality control programs, planning and design for flood control structures, erosion control and prevention projects and implementation of regulatory controls
Wastewater facility planning is conducted on an on-going basis by the Austin Water, as part of the City's Capital Improvements Program
Transportation planning conducted by the Transportation Department
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The base-map maintenance program provided by the Geographic Information Systems Section of the City's Communication and Technology Management Office, which is directed at building and maintaining a uniform land use base map to be used by all utilities and City departments, as one of several on-going planning support programs. Additional mapped data available includes topography, floodplains, geological features and political jurisdictions.
Program Activities Description
The Imagine Austin Comprehensive Plan was adopted by the Austin City Council in June
2012. Informed by broad community input, Imagine Austin provides a vision and roadmap
for our community’s future. This vision includes ensuring the city “will be safe and
affordable; promote physical activity, community engagement, and inclusion; make
amenities and services for current and future residents. Imagine Austin is a broad plan
covering many areas that when realized will make Austin a better place to live, work, and
play. Two major themes of Imagine Austin are “Complete Communities” and
“Sustainability.” As written in the plan, “sustainability means finding a balance among three
sets of goals: 1) prosperity and jobs 2) conservation and the environment 3) community
health, equity, and cultural vitality. It means taking positive proactive steps to protect quality
of life now and for future generations.” Complete communities are “safe and affordable;
promote physical activity, community engagement, and inclusion; make amenities and
services accessible to everybody, and contribute to Austin’s unique community spirit.”
To effectively address the themes of sustainability and complete communities, Imagine
Austin covers the built and natural environment, economy and equity topic areas. Since its
adoption, Imagine Austin has been recognized by peer groups and was honored in April 2014
with the American Planning Association’s inaugural “Sustainable plan Award.” This award
honors those projects, policies, plans, and people who show exemplary scholarship,
leadership and inspiration in sustainability planning and implementation.” In order to
transform the plan’s vision into reality, eight priority programs were identified to provide the
structure and direction to implement the plan:
1. Invest in a compact and connected Austin
2. Sustainably manage our water resources
3. Continue to grow Austin’s economy by investing in our workforce, education systems, entrepreneurs, and local businesses
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4. Use green infrastructure to protect environmentally sensitive areas and integrate nature into the City of Austin
5. Grow and invest in Austin’s creative economy
6. Develop and maintain household affordability throughout Austin
7. Create a Healthy Austin Program
8. Revise Austin’s development regulations and processes to promote a compact and connected city (also known as CodeNEXT)
The Growth Concept Map was created in tandem with the vision in order to illustrate where
and how we should accommodate new growth in alignment with the 8 priority programs.
The Growth Concept Map illustrates how Austin should coordinate transportation features
roads, transit, and urban trails with activity centers and corridors, in such a way as to reduce
degradation of Austin’s environmental resources. The map assembles compact and walkable
activity centers and corridors, as well as job centers, and coordinates them with future
transportation improvements. These centers and corridors allow people to reside, work shop,
access services, without traveling far distances. Within them the design and scale of
buildings and the design and availability of parks and gathering spaces will welcome people
of all ages and abilities. They will be walkable, bikeable, and connected to one another, the
rest of the city and the region by roads, transit, bicycle routes and lanes and trails.
The activity centers and corridors included on this map identify locations for additional
people and jobs above what currently exists on the ground. By focusing growth into these
centers and corridors, it is hoped that suburban sprawl trends can be reversed which will lead
to numerous benefits including environmental. Five centers are located over the recharge or
contributing zones of the Barton Springs Zone of the Edwards Aquifer or within Water-
Supply watersheds. These centers are located on already developed areas and in some
instances provide opportunities to address long-standing water quality issues and provide
walkable areas in and near existing neighborhoods. These centers should also be carefully
evaluated to fit within their infrastructural and environmental context. One of the Land Use
and Transportation policies LUT P21 clarifies the intent, “Ensure that redevelopment in the
EARZ and Contributing Zones maintains the quality to improve creek and floodplain
protection; prevent unsustainable public expense on drainage systems; simplify development
regulations where possible; and minimize the impact on the ability to develop land.
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On October 17, 2013 the Austin City Council passed a new Watershed Protection Ordinance to
improve creek and floodplain protection; prevent unsustainable public expense on drainage systems;
simplify development regulation where possible; and minimize the impact on the ability to develop
land. The Watershed Protection Ordinance is the result of a resolution approved by City Council on
January 13, 2011. The City held an extensive series of stakeholder meetings with over 200
participants from August 2011 through June 2013 to obtain public input. (See Table 6) and revised
(Table 5)
In 2001, the WPD developed a Watershed Protection Master Plan to better prioritize service needs
and refine program direction. The multi-phase Master Plan is an on-going effort to inventory existing
watershed problems and gauge and mitigate for the impact of future urbanization over a 40 year
horizon. Through the Master Plan process, the City assesses technical information to identify erosion,
flood and water quality problem areas; prioritizes problem areas; and identifies, evaluates, develops,
and implements solutions. Solutions include capital infrastructure projects, operating program
enhancements, and regulatory modifications.
Other active planning functions that support water quality planning are demographics and
population forecasting and land use planning analysis. The 2000 and 2003 land use data has
been collected and correlated with the 2010 census data. Development information that
tracks new construction modeling efforts and infill project creation is continuously updated,
analyzed and mapped, resulting in a wide variety of development activity trend analysis.
PDRD staff has created a 2010 land use inventory.
City comprehensive planning activities also include transportation planning. Transportation
planning takes into consideration the impacts of water quality regulations on population and
land use patterns. The Austin Metropolitan Area Transportation Plan (AMATP) is
implemented through subdivision requirements and through the City’s Capital Improvements
Program. AMATP is being reviewed for possible amendments to reflect recent water quality
regulation amendments and effects of the Endangered Species Act on local development
within sensitive habitats. Currently, City transportation planning is part of a joint effort with
the Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (CAMPO), the designated metropolitan
planning organization that coordinates transportation planning in the Austin area.
The Austin City Council has four representatives on the CAMPO Policy Advisory
Committee, the decision-making authority for CAMPO.
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Preparation of transportation plans requires close coordination with county governments,
other local jurisdictions, CAMPO and the Texas Department of Transportation. The City
makes use of boards and Commissions to review projects and make recommendations on a
variety of issues before the City Council takes action.
The City of Austin’s comprehensive planning programs will continue the various land-use,
environmental, and neighborhood and transportation planning activities throughout the
permit period. The City does not anticipate any immediate changes to the planning programs.
However changes to the scope of the program elements may be considered during review of
the City’s annual operating budget.
2. Development Regulations
Introduction
New development and redevelopment activities in the City of Austin’s planning jurisdiction
are subject to internal review for compliance with water quality regulations of the Austin
City Code. Development or redevelopment of an individual parcel of land generally
undergoes the following review process:
As part of the overall development review process, PDRD reviews zoning cases, subdivision
proposals, site development plan applications and proposed utility projects for compliance
with the water quality regulations of the Austin City Code. The PDRD staff is responsible for
the review of water quality related development intensities for various watershed categories
and specific water quality and flood control requirements in the City of Austin Code.
The PDRD includes development review staff that is responsible for the water quality related
aspects of project review, including:
the general review of new subdivisions for compliance with City drainage standards with respect to structural water quality controls, drainage easements and other proposed drainage facilities; and
Development Assessment
ZONING SUBDIVISION SITE PLAN BUILDING PERMIT
CONSTRUCTION INSPECTION
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the detailed review of specific water quality control structures, drainage easements and drainage facilities in the construction plans for subdivisions, site development projects and utility projects.
The PDRD review staff prepares comments and recommendations regarding the compliance
status of each zoning case or development proposal with respect to water quality and
drainage codes. If not administratively approved, the comments and recommendations
become part of the overall review comment packet prepared for the Environmental Board,
Planning Commission and Zoning and Platting Commission. The board and commission
members consider these staff comments in their deliberations and may hold public hearings,
when appropriate, prior to submitting their recommendations to City Council. Tables 2-2, 2-3
and 2-4 at the end of this section provide descriptions of the environmental and engineering
development review process functions.
Austin Water’s On-site Sewage Facilities (OSSF) division has the primary responsibility for
regulation of on-site wastewater facilities. A permit is required to construct any new on-site
system. (More information regarding on-site wastewater facilities is provided in the Illicit
Discharge and Improper Disposal Section 3).
Austin has an extremely active and environmentally knowledgeable citizenry that participates
in the development review process by attending public hearings held by the boards,
commissions and City Council. The City Council appoints members to the Environmental
Board, Planning Commission and Zoning and Platting Commission from the City's general
public. These boards and commissions address matters of environmental concern to the
community by reviewing specific projects, holding public hearings and advising the City
Council on priority issues. When making appointments to the boards and commissions, the
City Council attempts to strike a balance between members who represent the environmental
and the development communities.
The City of Austin has overlapping responsibility for subdivision and site plan review with
Travis, Williamson, and Hays Counties for those areas lying outside the City limits but still
within the Austin (ETJ). In the past, development permits were required from both units of
government in order to proceed. However with passage of HB 1204 (formally known as
1445), that became effective on June 20, 2003, cities and counties must now enter into an
interlocal agreement to address subdivision regulatory authority within a city’s ETJ.
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A uniform set of regulations (Title 30 of the City Code) for the Travis County ETJ was
adopted on December 11, 2003. Separate regulations have been adopted for Williamson and
Hays Counties. Under all the agreements, the City retains primary authority for enforcing
water quality regulations in the City and the ETJ. Development on state-owned property
lying within the City's jurisdiction is not regulated by the City. However, in some cases, a
development agreement that addresses water quality issues has been negotiated between the
City and the relevant state agency. These agreements typically include provisions for
treatment of storm water runoff and maximum levels of development intensity.
3. Zoning, Subdivision, and Site Plan Regulations
Zoning Regulations
Introduction
Zoning districts have been established in order to regulate the type of development that can
occur on a certain parcel of land. The land use regulations include the size of yards, courts
and other open spaces, the applicable density of population and the location and use of
buildings, structures and land for trade, residence and other purposes.
Although not specifically categorized as zoning districts, restrictions to impervious cover
levels and/or density have been established by watershed ordinances and included in the
Austin City Code. Research shows that water quality protection can be addressed through
low intensity zoning districts and through the water quality related development requirements
found in the Austin City Code for various watershed categories. Specific water quality
zoning districts are not yet in existence in the City of Austin; however, the reduced density or
impervious cover requirements of certain base districts or conditional overlay combining
districts should provide water quality benefits when located adjacent to or in proximity to
waterways. These existing zoning districts include the following: Rural Residential District
often used to zone the 100-year floodplain; Development Reserve District; Lake Austin
Residence District; and Conditional Overlay Combining District.
In addition, the City Code addresses water quality related development intensities for critical
water quality zones, water quality transition zones and upland zones. Even though zoning
districts and land uses are not specifically assigned, the impervious cover requirements for
the water quality zones and upland zones are limiting factors in the development process.
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These nonstructural water quality regulations are designed to reduce the impact of
development on water quality by providing for control of impervious cover in the drainage
basin and buffer zones along watercourses.
Program Activities Description
The PDRD reviews zoning cases for compliance with water quality related development
intensity regulations in the City Code.
This involves review of the following:
designation of the critical water quality zone and water quality transition zone adjacent to waterways;
compliance with impervious cover limitations assigned within each water quality zone and the upland zone based on the watershed category and proximity to the waterway given in Table 2; and
compliance with impervious cover requirements. Zoning change requests and development proposals are submitted to the Central Intake
Facility. At that time, PDRD staff prepares comments on the proposal within the time frame
set by City Code. Comments are made regarding the compliance status of each zoning
change proposal with applicable City zoning and water quality related intensity regulations,
and include staff recommendations for approval or denial. The project review and comment
packet is transmitted to the Planning Commission or Zoning and Platting Commission for
action. The commission considers these staff comments prior to submitting their
recommendations to City Council. The City Council has the final approval/denial authority
on zoning cases. See Table 2 for the zoning/environmental review function description.
Currently, all zoning districts have maximum impervious coverage limitations, but zoning
code requirements may be superseded by the impervious cover limitations found in the water
quality related development intensities in the City of Austin Code.
Subdivision Regulations Introduction
The subdivision of land involves the division of any lot or parcel of land into two or more
lots for the purpose of sale or development, including re-subdivision of existing lots in
lawfully platted land. The subdivision provisions in the City of Austin Code regulate the
manner in which development can proceed. These subdivision requirements include the
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development and approval of preliminary plans, the review and approval of final plats and
the approval of subdivision layout plans for streets, alleys, sidewalks, block lengths, lot
arrangements and lot sizes, the dedication of parkland and the installation of utilities.
The subdivision regulations in the City Code require plans for drainage controls and adequate
provisions for floodplains. The City Code also gives specific water quality related
requirements for development of land within the City's planning jurisdiction.
Proposed preliminary plans, final plats and subdivision construction plans are reviewed for
compliance with the water quality regulations of the Austin City Code. The review of
preliminary and final subdivision plats involve a general examination of layout design for
residential/commercial development and infrastructure. The preliminary or final plat must
demonstrate compliance with the intent of subdivision and water quality regulations, so that
once site development plans are submitted, the plans are not in violation of or do not require
As with site development plan applications, a detailed review of subdivision construction
plans both within the City limits and ETJ is conducted to ensure compliance with the water
quality regulations described below:
Water Quality Related Development Intensities and Water Quality: Requires that land adjacent to waterways be designated as critical water quality zones and water quality transition zones and sets out specific uses and impervious cover requirements.
Drainage: Allows only very limited open space related development in the 100-year floodplain. New development is generally prohibited, and dedication of the fully developed condition 100-year floodplain as drainage easement is required with all new subdivisions. Open channel drainage and storm sewer drainage requirements are also found in the City Code. Improvements are prohibited in the Erosion Hazard Zone unless protective works are provided.
Environmental Protection and Management and Water Quality: requires specific structural and nonstructural regulations for water quality protection.
Subdivision proposals for preliminary plans, final plats and subdivision construction plans
are submitted to the Central Intake Facility. At that time, PDRD staff prepares comments
within the time frame set by City Code. Staff comments reflect whether the plans comply
with City water quality and drainage regulations, and may include recommendations for
approval or denial. The PDRD reviews subdivision applications within the City and the ETJ
for compliance with water quality regulations regarding water quality zones, impervious
cover limitations, erosion and sedimentation controls, tree preservation, site disturbances, cut
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and fill, water quality controls, spoil disposal, storm sewer discharges, wastewater
restrictions, blasting, floodplain modification, industrial uses, roadways, pollution reduction
measures and monitoring, where applicable. The WPD reviews applications for compliance
with critical environmental features, including wetlands. Table 5 provides summaries of City
relevant water quality regulations.
The PDRD staff review the preliminary designs of water quality control structures and the
provisions for drainage easements (including 100-year floodplains) in the subdivision
applications. In addition, review staff estimate fiscal obligation requirements for water
quality controls and erosion and sedimentation controls. Once all staff review has been
completed, the project review and comment packet is transmitted to the appropriate boards
and commissions. See Table 3 for the subdivision/environmental review function description.
The subdivision review program, as currently organized in the PDRD, will continue to
function and be enforced as described above within the City’s Full Purpose jurisdiction and
ETJ. New administrative rules will be developed and implemented as needed. City Council
initiatives for development of more water quality protection ordinances could occur in the
future, but specific enactments cannot be foreseen at this time.
Site Development Plan Regulations
Introduction In the City of Austin, multifamily or commercial development on a specific parcel of land
requires the approval of a site plan and release of a site development permit. Site plans
involve two primary elements, the land use element and the construction element.
Review authority for the land use site plan extends to the City’s full purpose limits, but the
City’s authority to review the water quality and drainage element extends to the City’s
planning jurisdiction (ETJ).
The earliest watershed ordinances for Austin have been in existence since 1974. Current
water quality regulations in the Austin City Code were developed as part of the 1986
Comprehensive Watersheds Ordinance (CWO), and amended by the 1991 Urban Watersheds
Ordinance. As part of the citizens Save Our Springs (S.O.S.) initiative to further protect the
Barton Springs Zone, additional water quality regulations were adopted by City Council.
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Austin water quality regulations apply in the City’s planning jurisdiction. Since 1980, City
watershed ordinances have included water quality regulations for drainage from
development. These apply within the City and ETJ. The early ordinances regulated
density/intensity of development to protect water quality and in some cases required the use
of nonstructural controls, structural controls, or both to minimize the impact of storm water
that drains off development.
The CWO, adopted in 1986, combined environmentally related site development and
subdivision regulations into one document, thereby combining water quality regulations for
all non-urban watersheds within the City five-mile ETJ in one document. The CWO, as
amended and codified in the Austin City Code, contains the current water quality regulations
used for site development plan and subdivision plan review; in the Barton Springs Zone,
additional code requirements apply. Table 5 gives a brief summary of current City structural
and nonstructural water quality control requirements. The Watershed Protection Ordinance
passed by Austin City Council October 17, 2013 amended the CWO; the SWMP was revised
in 2014 year to reflect the changes. Site plans must also comply with the other water quality
related regulations, including those related to water quality related development intensities,
landscaping and tree preservation, drainage controls and floodplain provisions and specific
on-site water quality factors.
Program Activities Description
Applications for site development permits are submitted to the Central Intake Facility. At that
time, PDRD staff review the site plans and prepare comments within the time frame set forth
by City Code.
Staff comments reflect whether the plans comply with City water quality and drainage
regulations, and include recommendations for approval or denial of the development permit.
Administrative approval of site plans may occur if the site plan complies with City Code and
if it does not involve a conditional use, the Hill Country Roadway requirements, or variances.
If variances are requested, the project review and comment packet is transmitted to the
Environmental Board, Planning Commission and Zoning and Platting Commission for
action. The Environmental Board considers these staff comments and may hold a public
hearing prior to submitting recommendations to the Planning Commission, Zoning and
Platting Commission and City Council. The approval authority for site plans involving
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conditional uses and the Hill Country Roadway lies with the Planning Commission or Zoning
and Platting Commission. In some limited circumstances, decisions regarding variances to
site plans may be appealed to the City Council. The PDRD reviews the land use element of
site plans for site design and layout to ensure compliance with water quality zone
requirements, with development intensity and impervious cover limitations (which also have
water quality effects), for impacts on "the natural and traditional character" of the landscape,
landscape ordinance, tree protection ordinance, and for compliance with the City's Floodplain
Modification Guidelines.
The construction element of site plans is reviewed for the structural and nonstructural water
quality control requirements, as summarized in Table 5. The PDRD staff review the
structural design of water quality control structures proposed in the site plans.
The design and maintenance criteria for these systems are specified by the City in the
Environmental Criteria Manual. In addition, grading and the provision for drainage and
drainage easements (including the 100-year floodplain) is reviewed. The Erosion Hazard
Zone is reviewed for development within 100 feet of waterways with more than 64 acres of
drainage.
See Table 5 for the environmental site plan review function description. See Table 6
Watershed Protection Ordinance Regulations Summary Table. The site plan review program,
as currently organized in the PDRD, will continue to function and be enforced as described
above within the City’s planning jurisdiction.
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Table 2. City of Austin Zoning Process within the City Limits
Submittal To PDRD Intake
Environmental Regulation Review Elements Development:
Intensity
Density
Environmental:
Water resources/quality
Floodplain/flooding
Critical environmental features
Existing trees
Significant slopes greater than 15%
Review Authority PDRD
Planning Commission
Zoning and Platting Commission
Notice Property owners within 500 feet
Registered neighborhood organizations
within 500 feet
Utility Customers within 500 feet
Public hearings notification through sign posting and newspaper advertisements
Approval Authority City Council
Product Zoning change
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Table 3. City of Austin Subdivision Development Process within City Limits and ETJ Submittal To PDRD Intake
Environmental Regulation Review Elements
Design and Engineering:
Lot size and layout
Drainage and floodplains
Erosion Hazard Zone
Runoff controls and water quality controls
Environmental:
Water quality zones
Impervious cover calculations
Non-structural water quality controls
Structural water quality controls
Critical environmental features
Existing trees
Significant slopes greater than 15%
Review Authority PDRD
Environmental Board
Planning Commission
Zoning and Platting Commission
Notice Property owners within 500 feet
Registered neighborhood organizations within500 feet
Utility customers within 500’
Public hearings notification through sign posting and newspaper advertisements (preliminary plan only)
Approval Authority Planning Commission
Zoning and Platting Commission
PDRD Director Product Preliminary plan
Final plat
Released subdivision construction plan
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Table 4. City of Austin Site Plan Process* Submittal To PDRD Intake
Environmental Regulation Review Elements
Design:
Intensity
Density
Setbacks
Environmental:
Water quality zones
Impervious cover calculations
Non-structural water quality controls
Structural water quality controls
Critical environmental features
Existing trees
Significant slopes greater than 15%
Landscape requirements
Construction:
Drainage and floodplains
Erosion Hazard Zone
Runoff controls and water quality controls
Review Authority PDRD
Environmental Board
Planning Commission
Zoning and Platting Commission
Notice Property owners within 500 feet
Registered neighborhood organizations within 500 feet
Utility customers within 500 feet
p Public hearings notification through sign posting and newspaper advertisements
Approval Authority Planning Commission for: Hill Country Roadway site plans Conditional use site plans Variances
Administrative approval for all others if complying with City Code *Subdivision construction plans for SF/duplex development and commercial and MF subdivisions that contain roads undergo similar review process.
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Table 5. Summary of Water Quality Regulations in the Austin City Code, Chapter 25-8 Relative to the Watershed Protection Ordinance (Applicable Within City and ETJ)
General Standards – Chapter 25-8, Subchapter A
Critical Water Quality Zones (CWQZ)
Establishes CWQZs along creeks with drainage basins over 64 acres as well as the shorelines of lakes and rivers. The geometry of the buffer can vary with the size of the contributing drainage area and the watershed classification. Most waterways are classified as minor, intermediate, or major. Development or alterations within the CWQZ is prohibited, with exceptions for limited roadway
Water Quality Transition Zones (WQTZ)
Established WQTZs parallel to all CWQZs, except for waterways in the Urban and Suburban watersheds. Width differs depending on type of waterway. Limited development and impervious cover is allowed within WQTZs depending on watershed category.
Construction on Slopes Prohibits roadways or driveways on slopes over 15% unless providing access to flatter slopes. Prohibits structures on slopes over 25%. Allows structures on slopes between 15-25% if less than 10% impervious cover on slopes of 15-25% with containment and terracing.
Erosion & Sedimentation Controls (ESC)
Requires ESC for all construction and development within all watersheds. ESC plan must comply with standards in the City of Austin Environmental Criteria Manual.
Clearing and Temporary Site Disturbances
Limits survey width to 15 feet. Limits length of time between rough cutting and surfacing/stabilization to 18 months. Limits roadway clearing to twice the surface width. Required in all watersheds.
Cut and Fill Prohibits cut or fill over four feet except for within roadway rights-of-way and for structural excavation. Not applicable within Urban watersheds.
Water Quality Controls Requires water quality controls to capture, and treat runoff from all contributing areas in all watersheds. Innovative runoff management practices must be reviewed and approved by WPD. Requires water quality controls for all development in the Barton Springs Zone and for greater than 8,000 square feet of impervious cover in all other watersheds
Optional Payment-In-Lieu of Structural Controls
Allows developer the option to request authorization to deposit a cash payment with the City in lieu of constructing onsite structural water quality controls. Applicable only with Urban watersheds.
Floodplain Modification Floodplain modification is permitted if the modifications are necessary to protect public health and safety; would provide a significant, demonstrable environmental benefit; are necessary for development allowed in the CWQZ; or are located outside of the CWQZ in an area determined to be in poor or fair condition by a functional assessment of floodplain health.
Impervious Cover Impervious cover is defined as the total area of any surface that prevents the infiltration of water into the ground, with exceptions for things like trails, water quality controls, and pools. Limits in upland areas vary by watershed classification. Impervious cover in water supply watersheds and the Barton Springs Zone is calculated on a net site area basis.
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Redevelopment Exception Properties that meet all the requirements of the redevelopment exception (e.g., no increase in impervious cover, install water quality controls) do not have to comply with the rest of the requirements of Section 25-8 Subchapter A. The Redevelopment Exception varies by watershed regulation area.
Spoils Disposal Prohibits spoils sites in 100-year floodplains or on slopes over 15%, with some exceptions. Sites require reasonable access, restoration, and revegetation. Required in all watersheds.
Critical Environmental Features (CEFs)
Requires 150-foot setbacks from bluffs, springs, canyon rimrocks, caves, sinkholes, karst features, and wetlands. Setbacks may be administratively reduced upon inspection by staff geologists/biologists in WPD. No wetland protection in the central business district.
Wastewater Treatment Wastewater treatment by land application prohibited on slopes greater than 15 percent, in a critical water quality zone, in a 100-year floodplain, on the trunk of surveyed trees, in a CEF buffer, or during wet weather conditions.
Storm Sewer Discharges Allows issuance of a certificate of occupancy only if it is in compliance with requirements of Discharges to Storm Sewers or Watercourses of the City Code.
Additional Standards
Environmental Resource Inventory Requires an environmental resource inventory in accordance with the Environmental Criteria Manual regarding hydrology, vegetation, wastewater treatment, critical environmental features, and storm water runoff and pollution abatement.
Overland Flow Requires maintenance of overland flow patterns, natural drainage features and dispersion of runoff to sheet flow whenever possible.
Blasting Restrictions placed on blasting for projects in CWQZs or WQTZs over the Edwards Aquifer Recharge Zone and within 300 feet of critical environmental features.
Industrial Uses Requires pollutant attenuation plans and refers to City Code storage design requirements for hazardous materials. Requires detention of storm water onsite and filtration before discharge.
Roadways and Driveways Requires alternative designs for streets in water quality transition zones, minimum lot sizes and lot frontage and reasonable driveway access relative to design, grades and joint use.
Wastewater Treatment Wastewater treatment by land application prohibited on slopes greater than 15 percent, in a critical water quality zone, in a 100-year floodplain, on the trunk of surveyed trees, in a CEF buffer, or during wet weather conditions.
Storm Sewer Discharges Allows issuance of a certificate of occupancy only if it is in compliance with requirements of Discharges to Storm Sewers or Watercourses of the City Code.
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Table 5. Summary of Water Quality Regulations in the Austin City Code, Chapter 25-8 Relative to the Watershed Protection Ordinance (Applicable within City and ETJ)
Note: Pre-existing and non-conforming development approvals are subject to the grandfathering provisions of ordinance No. 20140612-084 which may be amended from time to time.
Additional Standards for Watersheds in the Barton Springs Zone
Impervious Cover Limits All percentages listed are maximums allowable values calculated on a net site area basis. 15% is allowed over the Recharge Zone. 20% is allowed over the Barton Springs Contributing Zone within the Barton Creek Watershed. 25% is allowed over the remaining portion of the Barton Springs Contributing Zone.
Pollutant Load Restrictions Requires that runoff be managed and treated such that no increases occur in the average annual loadings of total suspended solids, total phosphorus, total nitrogen, chemical oxygen demand, total lead, cadmium, E. coli, volatile organic compounds, total organic carbon, pesticides, and herbicides from the site.
Pollution Reduction Measures Impervious cover must be reduced if needed to assure compliance with pollutant load restrictions.
Critical Water Quality Zones (CWQZ) Boundary of the CWQZ shall not be less than 200 feet from the centerline of a major waterway, or less than 400 feet from the centerline of the main channel of Barton Creek. No pollution control structures or residential or commercial buildings may be established within the CWQZ.
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Table 6. City of Austin Watershed Protection Ordinance Regulations Summary Table Effective: October 28, 2013 Red Text = Change from Previous Requirements
key: CWQZ = Critical Water Quality Zone; ETJ = Extra-Territorial Jurisdiction; IC = Impervious Cover; SF = Single-Family Residential; WQ = Water Quality; WQTZ = Water Quality Transition Zone
REGULATORY CATEGORY
ZONE DESIRED DEVELOPMENT ZONE DRINKING WATER PROTECTION ZONEUrban Suburban City Limits Suburban
N. Edwards / ETJ Water Supply
Suburban Water
Supply Rural
Barton Springs
Zone Impervious Cover (IC)
Calculation Basis Gross Site Area Gross Site Area Gross Site Area Net Site Area Net Site Area Net Site Area Transfers Allowed No Yes Yes Yes Yes No
Uplands: Max Pct IC Max Pct Max Pct
Std / w Transfer Max Pct
Std / w Transfer Max Pct
Std / w Transfer Max Pct
Std / w Transfer Max Pct
[No Transfers] Single-Family Res. (Lot > 5750 ft²)
No Watershed IC Limit: Zoning Limits
only
50% / 60% 45% / 50% 30% / 40%
1 unit per 1 ac. / 1 unit per 2 ac.*
R / BC / C ** 15% / 20% / 25%
for all uses
Single-Family Res. (Lot < 5750 ft²) 55% / 60% 55% / 60% Multi-Family Residential Max Pct 60% / 70% 60% / 65%
40% / 55% 20% / 25% Commercial Max Pct 80% / 90% 65% / 70%
* Min lot ¾-acre; ½-acre with transfers; Clustering: 1 unit/ac max;
2 units/ac w transfer
** R = Recharge Zone BC = Barton Creek
Contributing C = Other Contributing
WQ Transition Zone Max Pct IC (outside floodplain)
Not Applicable Not Applicable Not Applicable 18% 1 SF unit / 3 acres 1 SF unit / 3 acres
None over recharge Critical WQ Zone:
Max Pct IC None (except
road crossings) None (except limited
road crossings) None (except limited
road crossings) None (except limited
road crossings) None (except limited
road crossings) None (except limited
road crossings) Critical Environmental Feature (CEF) Max Pct IC
None within 150 to 300 ft radius
None within 150 to 300 ft radius
None within 150 to 300 ft radius
None within 150 to 300 ft radius
None within 150 to 300 ft radius
None within 150 to 300 ft radius
Waterway Classifications
Minor 64 acres
64 – 320 acres 64 – 320 acres 64 – 320 acres 64 – 320 acres 64 – 320 acres Intermediate 320 – 640 acres 320 – 640 acres 320 – 640 acres 320 – 640 acres 320 – 640 acres Major over 640 acres over 640 acres over 640 acres over 640 acres over 640 acres Notes Urban creeks
not classified Waterway Setbacks
Critical Water Quality Zone Minor
50 – 400 ft.
No CWQZ Downtown
100 ft. 100 ft. 50 – 100 ft. 50 – 100 ft. 50 – 100 ft. Intermediate 200 ft. 200 ft. 100 – 200 ft. 100 – 200 ft. 100 – 200 ft. Major 300 ft. 300 ft. 200 – 400 ft. 200 – 400 ft. 200 – 400 ft.
(Barton mainstem 400 ft.)
Notes Between min and max width,coincides with
the 100-year fully-
developed floodplain
"Buffer averaging" allow
buffers by up to one-ha
protected rem
s sites to reduce width of
lf if the overall amount
ains the same
Betw
en min and max width, coincid100-year fully-developed flood
es with the plain
Water Quality Transition Zone Minor
Not Required
Not Required
Not Required 100 ft. 100 ft. 100 ft.
Intermediate 200 ft. 200 ft. 200 ft. Major 300 ft. 300 ft. 300 ft.
Variances from Buffers Administrative under
certain conditions Must apply f
Commissioor Land Use n variance
Must apply for Land Use Commission variance.
Water Quality Controls
Treatment Standard Sedimentation/
Filtration Sedimentation/
Filtration Sedimentation/
Filtration Sedimentation/
Filtration Sedimentation/
Filtration Non-Degradation
When Required
All new/redeveloped if IC > 8,000 sq. ft.
All new/redeveloped if IC > 8,000 sq. ft.
All new/redeveloped if IC > 8,000 sq. ft.
All new/redeveloped if IC > 8,000 sq. ft.;
all IC in WQTZ
All new/redeveloped if IC > 8,000 sq. ft.;
all IC in WQTZ
All development
Allowed in Creek Buffer CWQZ = Yes per ECM
WQTZ = N/A CWQZ = Yes per ECM
WQTZ = N/ACWQZ = Yes per ECM
WQTZ = N/ACWQZ = No
WQTZ = Yes per ECM CWQZ = No
WQTZ = Yes per ECM CWQZ = No
WQTZ = Yes per ECM
Alternative Strategies Allowed Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No
Optional Payment-in-Lieu Yes No No No No No
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B. Flood Control Projects
1. Existing Flood Control Retrofit Program
Introduction
The WPD Engineering divisions evaluate storm water structural controls throughout the
City’s MS4 to determine if retrofitting is feasible.
Program Activities Description
Although historically many structural flood control devices have been implemented through
the City’s Regional Storm Water Management Program (RSMP), many other flood and water
quality controls were built through private development. The WPD will evaluate the existing
RSMP flood control structures (regional detention ponds), non-RSMP flood control
structures and other urban sites as potential flood/water quality retrofit locations.
Each of the identified facilities will be assessed utilizing the following site evaluation
criteria:
General size and layout
Critical or constraining environmental features
Topographic constraints or opportunities
Drainage area size and pollutant load
Opportunities for BMP integration with existing features
Community acceptance
The following are examples of the water quality technologies that may be considered for use
at each identified facility as determined practicable by the City:
Permanent wet pool
Bio-retention systems
Extended detention
Erosion detention and base flow augmentation may also be considered for use in combination
with these water quality technologies. Cost effectiveness of retrofit activities will be taken
into account during the evaluation process to determine implementation priority.
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Program Schedule
Evaluations and consideration of flood/water quality retrofit potential will continue at each of
the identified structures throughout the five-year permit period. No specific schedule will be
set for the retrofit evaluation process as it will be done in conjunction with other master
planning processes, to be based on a needs assessment currently underway.
2. Future Flood Control Review Program
Introduction
In the effort to assess the potential water quality impacts from proposed flood control
projects, the City of Austin uses both regulatory design requirements and technical review to
evaluate both municipal and private flood control projects.
Program Activities Description
City of Austin Land Development Code (LDC) currently requires an Environmental
Assessment (EA) be filed with the director of the WPD for any proposed development
located in a floodplain. This includes both City and private flood control projects such as
large regional detention facilities and any type of floodplain modification. The requirements
of the EA include a Hydrogeological Report which must demonstrate that the proposed
drainage patterns resulting from the construction of the project will protect the quality and
quantity of recharge at significant points. The EA must also include a Vegetation Report, a
Wastewater Report, and a Pollutant Attenuation Plan for any proposed industrial use that is
not completely enclosed in a building.
For both City and private flood control projects, the flood control facility design and the
accompanying EA are submitted with the permit application and reviewed by WPD staff.
The proposed project must also comply with the requirements of the City’s LDC, ECM and
Drainage Criteria Manual (DCM). LDC and ECM codes and rules require project impacts to
water quality and riparian systems to be evaluated and minimized. The DCM outlines design,
performance and safety criteria for storm water management. Any storm water management
pond with a height of over 15 feet is classified as a large regional pond and is reviewed by
WPD staff.
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In addition, WPD completed Phase I of its Watershed Protection Master Plan to better
prioritize service needs and to refine program directions. As part of the Master Plan, WPD’s
MIP Team will integrate, to the greatest extent possible, flood control, erosion control and
water quality goals into future WPD projects. Currently, all WPD flood control projects meet
LDC, ECM and DCM requirements and include evaluations of opportunities to incorporate
erosion control and water quality design features.
During the five-year permit period the City of Austin will continue to evaluate proposed
flood control projects as outlined above, with more refined evaluation and assessment criteria
to be developed based on the Master Plan activities. The City does not anticipate any changes
to the flood control programs. However changes to the scope of these programs may be
considered during review of the City’s annual operating budget.
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3. Illicit Discharges and Improper Disposal
A. Illicit and Allowable Discharges
Ordinance
To effectively prohibit illicit discharges to the municipal separate storm sewer system
(MS4), the City of Austin uses a series of ordinances. The City code sections that
address illicit discharges and improper disposal are as follows:
Water Quality Regulations
Title 6, Chapter 6-5. Water Quality
The chapter 6-5 Water Quality regulations of the Austin City Code contain regulatory language that prohibits non-storm water discharges into storm sewers or water courses and provides requirements for pretreatment, monitoring and specifications related to specific activities. In addition, provisions for inspection by the City and penalties due to violations are included in this chapter.
Watershed Regulations
Title 25, Chapter 25-8. Environmental
This chapter of the Austin City Code contains language that prohibits illegal connections to the storm sewer system or any other illicit discharges at newly constructed facilities. Section 25-8-362 (Storm Sewer Discharge) of the Chapter states: “ A certificate of occupancy may not be issued for development subject to this subchapter unless the development is in compliance with Chapter 6-5, Article 5 (Discharges Into Storm Sewers Or Watercourses).”
Hazardous Materials Storage and Registration Regulations
2003 International Fire Code
The Austin Fire Department enforces the 2003 International Fire Code (IFC) to regulate hazardous materials storage and registration in the City of Austin. Included in IFC is regulatory language that prohibits the discharge of materials into the storm sewer or watercourses. Section 2703.3 of the IFC states:
“Hazardous materials in any quantity shall not be released into a sewer, storm drain, ditch, drainage canal, creek, stream, river, lake or tidal waterway or on the ground, sidewalk, street, and highway or into the atmosphere.”
The City of Austin also has amended sections of the IFC to include provisions for reporting emergencies and cost recovery. In addition, the Fire Department requires adherence with Section 6-5-51 of the City of Austin Code.
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Litter Regulations
Title 10, Chapter 10-5. Litter
Chapter 10-5, Article 3 of the Austin City Code prohibits litter. Section 10-5-42 (Littering Prohibited) of the chapter states:
(A) A person commits an offense if the person deposits or throws litter on a street, alley, sidewalk, premises, vacant lot or public property, including a park or playground.
(B) A person commits an offense if the person deposits or throws litter along a street, alley, sidewalk or public property, including a park or playground.
(C) A person commits an offense if the person deposits or throws litter from cleaning the interior of a residence, business or premises on a street, alley, sidewalk or creek.” On-Site Sewage Facility Regulations
Title 15, Chapter 15-5. Private Sewage Facilities
Chapter 15-5 of the Austin City Code provides regulations for sewage facilities. Section 15-5-26 (discharge or spill) of the chapter provides specific guidelines for reporting and cleanup activities so that appropriate action is taken to “protect public health and the environment.” Enforcement
The City investigates illicit discharges on a complaint or emergency response basis and
on the results of the dry weather screening activities. Investigations of suspect facilities
or activities include a thorough inspection of the premises and the connections to the
MS4 to determine if an illicit discharge has occurred, or if the potential for illicit
discharges exists.
When an illicit discharge is found, City investigators work with the responsible party(s)
to obtain voluntary compliance with City Code requirements. If voluntary compliance
cannot be achieved, legal action can be taken against the violators in Municipal Court
(See Prosecution). Illicit discharges to the storm sewer system found during routine
facility inspections conducted by other City programs are addressed by the investigator
conducting the inspection. If the illicit discharge cannot be addressed in this manner,
the problem will be reported to the Pollution Hotline for follow-up inspection and
investigation. In addition, other City field staffs have been instructed to follow the
proper procedures for reporting illicit discharges.
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Prosecution
If voluntary compliance is not obtained, evidence of the violation, including
investigation reports, photo documentation of the violation and all correspondence with
the responsible party, is supplied to the City’s Law Department staff.
The WPD legal enforcement liaison will then file a complaint in Municipal Court and
work with a prosecutor to prepare the case against the violator and any responsible
party(s). The City’s Law Department prosecutes environmental cases, as necessary in
Municipal Court, and in most cases Chapters 25-8 (Land Development Code) and 6-5
(Water Quality Code) of the Austin City Code are cited as the legal mechanism for
prosecution. Violations of Chapters 6-5 and 25-8 are Class C misdemeanors, finable
up to $2,000 per violation. The penalty and fines imposed by the Municipal Court
Judge are generally based upon the recommendation of the City Prosecutor, but in most
cases a plea bargain is negotiated and a “deferred disposition” verdict is reached. In
such cases, the defendant may be required to post a $1,000 bond that will be returned
upon completion of the court ordered cleanup or corrective activities. If the defendant
corrects the violation in the negotiated time frame to the satisfaction of the investigator
and the court then the charges will be dropped from the defendant’s record. If the
defendant fails to comply with the court Order, a “revocation hearing” will be held, at
which time the judge will rule on the case. Depending on the court ruling, bond money
may not be returned and additional fines may be assessed. New charges may be filed
against the defendant the next working day (as the violation of City Code still exists),
beginning the process again.
B. Detection and Elimination of Illicit Discharges
Wastewater Pipelines
Introduction
The City’s wastewater collection system (separate from the storm water system) is
operated and maintained by the Pipeline Operations Program. Austin Water (AW) is
responsible for inspection and repair of wastewater infrastructure within the service
area.
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Program Activities Description
Austin Water has installed permanent flow monitoring equipment with telemetry at its
major wastewater interceptors to monitor significant sources of inflow and infiltration
(I&I). The utility conducts Sewer System Evaluation Survey (SSES) studies for the
collection system in two drainage basins of its wastewater service area every year.
The collection system located within the Edwards Aquifer Recharge Zone (EARZ) is
televised once every five years to comply with the Texas Commission Environmental
Quality (TCEQ) Edwards Aquifer Rules. In addition to the closed circuit TV inspection
required by TCEQ, the utility also cleans the wastewater lines and inspects manholes
located in the EARZ. Interceptors in creeks are “walked” for visual inspection of any
damage after indication of significantly high flows. The utility uses television trucks
for conducting closed circuit TV inspection of its wastewater lines. Sources of
infiltration and seepage that cannot be eliminated through the routine maintenance are
evaluated as part of a SSES to determine the best method of
rehabilitation/repair/replacement.
Illegal connections of storm sewers to sanitary sewers are removed as soon as they are
detected during the various monitoring activities such as flow monitoring, sewer
cleaning, TV inspection, smoke testing, dye testing and creek walking. Any illicit
discharge of sewage or wastewater from a private or public system may be reported to
the Austin Water or WPD Pollution Hotline by the public. The City’s Spills and
Complaint Response Program (SCRP) of the WPD investigate any Pollution Hotline
reports of overflows that threaten to discharge to a storm sewer or waterway. As noted
in the introduction, SCRP staff is responsible for determining the source of illegal
discharge such as wastewater discharges into Austin waterways, and enforcing
regulations preventing these discharges. The Plumbing Inspection Division of the
PDRD enforces appropriate provisions of the plumbing code relative to on-site sewage
piping and connections. AW and SCRP staff may also coordinate with other
governmental agencies, such as the TCEQ, and/or the Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) during emergency spill incidents.
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During the five year permit period, the City’s program to prevent the infiltration or
seepage of wastewater from wastewater lines into its storm sewer system and
waterways will be responsible for completing the following of activities each year:
Clean wastewater lines
TV inspection of wastewater lines
Smoke test wastewater line interceptors
Provide routine maintenance of wastewater lines as necessary
Replace or rehabilitate wastewater lines as necessary
C. Overflows and Infiltration
On-site Sewage Facilities (Septic Systems)
Introduction
The City of Austin Water Utility (Austin Water) regulates on-site sewage facilities located
within its jurisdictional boundaries through the management and implementation of the City’s
On-Site Sewage Facilities (OSSF) Program. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality
(TCEQ) has granted authority to Austin Water to enforce the requirements established in Title
30 of the Texas Administrative Code (TAC) Chapter 285 and has approved additional
requirements under City Code 15-5. The focus of the program is to abate and/or prevent
pollution and injury to the public health from the use of inadequate and/or failing private
sewage facilities thus preventing the improper disposal of domestic waste and sewage.
Program Activities Description
The OSSF Program uses a multi-step process to reduce or prevent the possibility of
illegal discharges from on-site sewage facilities, including seepage infiltration, or
runoff of partially treated effluent into Austin’s municipal separate storm sewer
system. To increase public protection and prevent the introduction of partially treated
effluent into the environment, Austin Water amended Chapter 15-5 on October 3,
2013. The effective date of the revised ordinance was November 1. 2013. The revised
ordinance includes more stringent design and monitoring requirements for OSSF.
Major revisions include but are limited to:
Mandatory nitrogen treatment in certain environmentally sensitive areas such as the Edwards Aquifer recharge zone. This requirement applies to all OSSF that are new or upgraded.
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Standard absorption drain fields - greater vertical separation distance from the bottom of the trench to groundwater is required.
On-going maintenance and reporting for secondary and tertiary treatment systems is required;
Mandatory training, certification, and registration for homeowners maintaining their own secondary treatment system.
On-going maintenance and reporting for homeowner maintained secondary treatment systems.
Installation of low-flow water conservation fixtures in buildings contributing wastewater to the OSSF when an OSSF is new or upgrading is required.
Increased lot sizes for new subdivision. Mandatory upgrade to current OSSFs standards for OSSF installed prior to
1983 and proposing to increase the square footage or footprint to the home.
Additional program elements include; but are not limited to: Unless approved by the Director, no OSSF systems will be installed within 100
feet of an organized wastewater collection line (this is measured from the property line to the nearest available wastewater line);
A permit is required to construct any new OSSF system; Owners of an OSSF must obtain a license to operate prior to placing the OSSF
in service. The license may include site specific monitoring and reporting requirements. Sites with an OSSF and seeking to obtain a building permit from the City of Austin must be evaluated for potential impacts to the OSSF before a building permit can be issued.
Plans of new or modified systems are reviewed to ensure compliance with design
and installation requirements. The minimum requirements for installing an OSSF
system have been established; these include, but are not limited to:
Minimum lot sizes Minimum setback distances required from (e.g.streams, ponds, lakes, rivers,
creeks, seeps, drainage easements, etc.) Special design requirements for systems located in the Edwards Aquifer
Recharge Zone, the Barton Springs Contributing Zone, and systems located within 75 feet of Lake Austin.
Special design requirements for OSSF located within the 100-year flood Special planning requirements for systems located within the regulated
waterway. Proximity to water supply systems Identification of faults, fractures and sink holes in karst topography Location of impermeable layers of rock or clay Demonstration of adequate soil texture and depth for system designs
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The current code does not require existing OSSF to be abandoned unless the systems
are failing (e.g., the OSSF are known sources of pollution, nuisance conditions and/or a
threat to public health, or when the system is altered). The City may inspect OSSF
reasonably believed to be causing pollution. Enforcement action may be taken for any
non-compliant OSSF. Enforcement actions may include citations for failure or refusal
to remedy conditions prohibited by City Code. Violations of City Code may be issued
through the appropriate municipal court. Violations of the City Water Quality Code,
which include any un-permitted or illicit discharges of sewage or wastewater from a
private or public system, into a storm sewer system or waterway are reported to City’s
WPD Spill Complaint Response Program (SCRP). The SCRP is responsible for
determining the source of illegal discharges such as wastewater discharges to storm
water sewers, evaluating the impacts of such discharges to Austin’s waterways and
enforcing regulations preventing these discharges.
When necessary action may be taken through Municipal Court to enforce these
provisions of the City Code. Additional remedies available to the City include; but are
not limited to, the temporary disconnection of water and/or electric services to non-
compliant sites.Austin Water also coordinates enforcement activities with several other
local agencies such as the TCEQ, the Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA), Travis
County Transportation and Natural Resources Department and the Williamson County
Health District on an as needed basis. For example, the TCEQ may assist with the
enforcement of special regulations for the construction of wastewater systems over the
Edwards Aquifer Recharge Zone, and the LCRA may assist with regulations regarding
private sewage facilities near Lake Travis and the other Highland Lakes.
The effectiveness of the City’s program to prevent the infiltration or seepage, or runoff
of partially treated wastewater into its storm sewer system and waterways will be
measured through several indirect means, including:
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the number of new systems permitted and inspected;
the number of enforcement actions taken against poorly maintained sites with
advanced treatment systems (secondary and tertiary);
the number of investigations and enforcement actions taken to correct failing
systems; and
the number of complaint responses related to private sewage systems discharges
D. Household Hazardous Waste and Used Motor Vehicle Fluids
Introduction
The City's ARR is responsible for the development and management of the City’s
Household Hazardous Waste (HHW) Program. These programs fall within the disposal
services operational area. The HHW Program functions as a stand-alone program that
operates with a staff of environmental professionals. Staff members provide the day-to-
day operations and management of the facility and program.
The City of Austin's HHW Program serves the residents Austin and Travis County,
Texas. Funding is primarily from City ARR customers, although 13-17 percent of
program participants come from Travis County outside the City's service area, and
Travis County now contributes close to 10 percent of the annual program budget. The
program focus is on decreasing pollution from indiscriminate use or disposal of home
chemicals and used oil, thus preventing pollution of local watersheds contributing to
the Colorado River.
Citizens from surrounding counties may use the program’s services, although they
must pay a fee for the use. Publicity is provided through local newspapers and other
news media, and talks provided to area schools, professional organizations and
environmental conferences. With the assistance of the TCEQs Pollution Prevention and
Education Section, and the North American Hazardous Materials Management
Association (NAHMMA), information on the operation and success of Austin's
program is made available to communities throughout Texas and the United States.
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This program continues to benefit Austin and Travis County residents by providing
convenient, responsible disposal options so that hazardous household wastes are
removed from the City's and County’s regular liquid (sanitary sewer) and solid waste
streams. Proper disposal of hazardous waste also decreases this category of material
from being disposed of in vacant yards, easements or storm sewers. Removing
flammable, caustic or explosive hazards from solid waste collections contributes to a
safer work place for sanitation workers and lessens risks for fire fighters. Program
awareness and participation also helps make homes safer. Public education efforts are
detailed in Section 10, Public Education.
Program Activities Description
Household Hazardous Waste Program
The HHW Program consists mainly of the semi-weekly collection program at a
permanent solid waste transfer facility, although customers who require home pickups
or other accommodations will be helped throughout the week. Household battery
collection and recycling through numerous area stores, latex paint recycling and
distribution, and reusing safe, good quality products in a product reuse program will
continue. Although the City can no longer accept Conditionally Exempt Small
Quantity Generator (CESQG) wastes, as 30 TAC 335 Subchapter N disallows this
practice, CESQG customers will be provided a list of vendors. The City of Austin’s
HHW Program operations will be reviewed to maximize waste reductions and enhance
recycling whenever possible.
City of Austin staff accepts and segregates waste into approved shipping containers for
storage until the disposal contractor can transport the waste for disposal or recycling.
Mixed solvents, antifreeze, oil, and latex paint will be bulked into drums (or storage
tanks for oil and antifreeze) during collection hours. Oil-based paint is packaged into
cubic yard boxes.
A qualified, permitted hazardous waste transporter and disposal contractor is present,
on a semi-weekly basis, to further segregate the collected material, manifest, package
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and transport collected wastes for disposal at U.S. EPA licensed disposal facilities.
Collected waste will be stored at the HHW Facility in accordance with Title 30 Texas
Administrative Code (30 TAC) Chapter 335 Subchapter N. Access to this facility by
the public at times other than the scheduled collection hours will be restricted, but
some HHW materials will be accepted off schedule if delivered, at the discretion of the
HHW employees.
Paint Recycling Program
Another successful program under the HHW umbrella is the latex paint recycling
program. Part of the segregation operation at the facility includes determining if latex
paint, which is dropped off, is in usable condition. Good latex paint is poured into two
separate containers to make up light and dark latex paint. The City of Austin has a
contract with a local paint company to blend and package the latex paint into five-
gallon pails. After receiving the packaged paint back onsite, it is given to 501(c) groups
for building projects, to the Physical Graffiti Abatement Program of the Austin Police
Department and to other groups deemed candidates for the paint.
Public Education Involvement and Intergovernmental Coordination
Another key component to the success of the HHW Program will be continued public
involvement and coordination with other government entities. The City’s HHW
Program works closely and coordinates program planning and implementation with the
TCEQs Pollution Prevention and Education Section. Notification of any HHW
collection program is required 45 days prior, and a full operational plan with specific
regulatory requirements is required to be available on site for any HHW collection. For
permanent sites such as Austin’s, the notification is required to be updated periodically
(typically annually) while the operational plan is updated as changes occur within the
program. The City will also continue to work closely with the LCRA and Travis
County. Travis County contributes funds to pay for the county’s share of hazardous
waste transportation and disposal costs and additional employees to handle the
workload in managing HHW from County residents outside the City.
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The county and the City have agreed that County funding contributions to the program
will be based on the percentage of participation coming from areas in the county
outside the City limits.
E. MS4 Screening and Illicit Discharge Inspections
Introduction
The primary goal of the illicit discharge inspection program is to detect the source of
illicit discharges to the City’s municipal separate storm sewer system (MS4) in the
effort to prevent or minimize the impact to water quality or other natural resources in
the Austin area. This goal will be achieved through investigation of portions of the
MS4 identified as potential sources of non-storm water discharges due to illicit
connections or improper disposal practices.
Program Activities Description
The illicit discharge inspection program is based primarily on the activities of the
SCRP of the WPD. The SCRP staff investigates reports of illicit discharges to the
storm sewer system.
Program Procedures are as follows: The SCRP investigators track the route of an illicit
discharge and attempt to identify its source and cause. The standard procedures for
conducting illicit discharge investigations have been summarized in the following
outline (Figure 6-1).
The SCRP staff maintains written documentation on all illicit discharge investigations.
The documentation will include, as necessary, information such as field observations,
potential responsible party information, causes, sources, specific violations (or
potential violations) observed, response action requested and final resolution. Incident
reports are kept in a computer database that can be queried by map grid, watershed,
facility name and various other pertinent fields.Any supporting material acquired
during the investigation, including MSDSs, photos, phone logs or waste manifests are
kept in respective hard copy incident files. Illicit discharge investigation and inspection
activities are not scheduled; rather they are initiated as warranted by the dry weather
screening program referrals or reports of illicit discharges or improper disposal
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practices submitted by citizens, other departments or agencies. The City does not
anticipate any changes to the illicit discharges and improper disposal program,
however changes to the scope of the various program components may be considered
during review of the City’s annual operating budget.
Figure 6-1. Illicit Discharge Investigation Procedures
INITIAL INVESTIGATION:
Review information reported. If illicit materials discharged from storm drain outfall:
Assess general properties of discharge.
Determine if emergency containment is necessary. Evaluate environmental impact. Collect samples if necessary. Record observations on standard report form, documenting observations about discharged material. Use storm drain maps to identify potential area of discharge origin. Inspect storm drains and investigate suspect activities within the identified area for potential origin of
discharge. Establish contact with potentially responsible party and/or other agency representatives.
Explain purpose of investigation, authority and communicate applicable regulations to suspected or potential responsible party.
INVESTIGATION AT DISCHARGE ORIGIN LOCATION: Collect samples from suspected origin of discharge if necessary. Investigate potential illicit plumbing connections:
Conduct visual observation of plumbing connections.
Conduct visual observation of area for staining or erosion due to illicit connection.
Record observations on standard report form. Dye tracing (if necessary) to confirm illicit connection. If testing several plumbing connections at one facility:
Identify one color for each connection (ex. red for 1st wash sink, green for 2nd wash sink) and record on standard report form.
Pour appropriate dye colorant down drain.
Turn on tap water at each connection and let run for at least 15 minutes.
Observe flow from storm water outfall identified for the particular facility.
Identify illicit drain connection by dye color and record on standard report form.
If no flow at outfall, check area surrounding facility for potential overland flow.
If testing connection at more than one facility:
Identify one color for each facility.
Pour appropriate dye colorant down each drain at the facility.
Turn on tap water at each connection at let run for at least 15 minutes.
Observe flow from storm water outfall identified for each facility.
Identify facility with illicit drain connection by dye color and record on standard report form.
Once facility has been identified, repeat process for individual facility.
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F. NPDES and TPDES Permittee List
The SDPP staff has implemented a database of industrial and high-risk facilities
discharging to the City’s MS4. SDPP staff utilizes the TCEQ NOI database, and
information from field inspections to maintain the database. Summary data is reported
annually in Section 5 of the System-wide Annual Report.
G. MS4 Maps
The WPD maintains a Geographic Information System (GIS) feature class of the
mapped MS4 system. This information is continually updated and MS4 system maps
are produced upon request.
H. Spill Prevention and Response
Introduction
This program seeks to protect the water quality of streams and related natural resources
in Austin. This program targets illegal or illicit discharge to the storm sewer system
and spills of hazardous and non-hazardous materials, which might be a threat to water
quality within the City’s planning jurisdiction and water supply watersheds. Discharges
may occur through illicit plumbing connections to the City's storm sewer system,
deliberate dumping or accidental spills of hazardous and non-hazardous materials. This
program will work to reduce the number of these discharges by tracking and
eliminating illicit connections, enforcing state and local statutes regarding illegal
discharges and responding to accidental spills to monitor material containment and
clean-up.
The responsibility for responding to surface water quality complaints and hazardous
and non-hazardous materials spills for water quality protection is held by the WPD,
ERM Division, Pollution Prevention and Reduction (PPR) Section. The Austin Fire
Department (AFD) is responsible for responding to hazardous material spills for
protection of human health and safety. AFD also responds to certain non-hazardous
materials releases that may be a threat to life, property, or the environment.
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The TCEQ is responsible for regulating disposal of hazardous waste, dealing with
pollution threats to ground water and protecting surface water for the State of Texas,
which includes the City of Austin.
Program Activities Description
The WPD maintains a rapid response capability by having investigators on-call on a
rotating basis, and after-hours notification of environmental emergencies is
accomplished through a 24-hour hotline operated by the WPD. In a typical response
situation, the Spills and Complaints Response Program (SCRP) investigators are
notified of hazardous material incidents by the AFD dispatch office. Occasionally, this
notification is from the TCEQ or the Austin and Travis/Travis County Health and
Human Services (HHSD). Water pollution complaints are received from many sources:
directly from private citizens calling the department's Pollution Hotline, and referrals
from other City departments such as the ATCHD or AW and referrals from other
regulatory agencies such as TCEQ or LCRA. Figure 7-1 shows the procedures for
conducting an investigation and Figure 7-2 describes each procedure.
The SCRP classifies incident investigations into two different categories: Priority
Incidents and non-priority incidents. “Priority Incidents” are generally emergency spill
incidents and situations that pose an immediate threat to water resources. “Non-priority
incidents” are general environmental complaints that do not pose an immediate threat
to water resources. SCRP investigators respond to priority and non-priority incidents
within the scope of WPD programs. However, when the investigators note other
problems outside their jurisdiction, they will refer them to other departments or
agencies for action as appropriate.
SCRP investigators attempt to obtain voluntary compliance with applicable water
quality regulations when violations are found. If unable to obtain voluntary compliance
with City regulations, WPD staff has the option of filing complaints against the
responsible party(s) in municipal court. Uncooperative offenders are sometimes
referred to the TCEQ or EPA for enforcement as well. Criminal investigations where
necessary are referred to Travis County Attorney’s Office.
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Ultimate enforcement may be through one or more City departments or external
agencies as their jurisdictions apply. Investigators in this program work with a large
number of regulatory entities, including interactions with government organizations at
the federal, state, county and local level. It is the policy of the WPD to provide all
possible cooperation with these agencies, and SCRP staff meets periodically with the
different agencies to discuss cooperation and coordination, lines of communication and
areas of jurisdiction.
In addition to the spill and complaint response activities, the SCRP staff provides a
data retrieval service for industry and interested citizens seeking data on spills and
complaints. Investigation reports are recorded from a field notebook into a
computerized database. Materials gathered during an investigation, such as
photographs, reports, correspondence and Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) are
kept in an investigation file. Information requests under the Freedom of Information
Act are also received from businesses, citizens and the media. This information is
gathered from the database and investigation files.
Program staff also provides an educational service by offering information to regulated
businesses, City departments that work with WPD and citizens groups. This
information is provided in the form of written handouts and staff presentations.
Currently handouts include general program description, regulatory contact
information, good housekeeping and spill clean-up procedures, and waste recycling
information.
During the permit period, the SCRP will continue spill and complaint response
activities. However the program expects to see continued growth in the number of
investigations. This increase is expected to be due in part by efforts to increase
community awareness of environmental issues and the City’s pollution prevention
programs. Enhanced public awareness may be achieved through the development of
educational materials for public distribution, working with local media and marketing
program staff and giving public presentations to targeted organizations.
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There are a large number of neighborhoods and environmental organizations in the
City of Austin and these groups provide good information on the activities in their
areas that might be causing water pollution. SCRP staff has given presentations to
some of these groups and will continue to do so as a part of its effort to increase
community awareness.
The WPD currently sponsors a youth monitoring program that monitors the water
quality of local streams, creeks and lakes. These young citizens are an excellent source
of routine information on polluting discharges to storm sewers and watercourses, and
have been briefed on how to contact the SCRP in the event that they observe a
polluting discharge while in the field. These efforts are expected to increase the number
of spills and pollution problems reported to the program, thereby increasing the amount
of pollutants (i.e. spill residues) removed from the environment.
Over the five-year permit period WPD will continue to seek advanced training
opportunities to expand emergency response personnel knowledge and experience in
addition to maintaining the current level of training, which includes:
Hazardous Materials Operations and Emergency Response 40 hour course (satisfies OSHA 1910.120)
In house training using staff resources, training manuals, videos, WPD safety liaison and various reference manuals
Various conferences, workshops and seminars related to spill clean-up techniques, disposal of contaminated materials, federal and state environmental regulations, emergency response, and investigation techniques, and other related subjects such as confined spaces and rail car releases
Periodic review of the City the Water Quality Code, which regulates discharges to
storm sewers and watercourses, may also occur during the five year permit period to
consider whether modifications are appropriate.
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Figure 7-1. Spill and Complaint Response Process Flow Chart
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Figure 7-2. Spills and Complaints Response Program Investigation Procedure
CALL RECEIVED Calls are received through a 24-hour hotline by program investigators. WPD JURISDICTION? Yes: Investigator prioritizes call and responds to calls in order of priority. No: Refer to appropriate agency (see appropriate agency referral)
APPROPRIATE AGENCY REFERRAL
Refer to appropriate agency according to referral table (see Figure 7-3) Complete investigation report (see report completion)
INVESTIGATION
Review information reported Prioritize response according to potential environmental impact Check and prepare equipment necessary for the investigation (see equipment list) Observe from distance and approach with caution and upwind if necessary Establish contact with potentially responsible party and/or other agency representatives, and present credentials Explain purpose of investigation and authority Record observations in field notebook, documenting any violations or potential violations
SPILL FOUND
Yes: Assess general properties of material spilled to determine mode of initial containment if necessary Evaluate environmental impact if appropriate Contact other agencies for assistance as necessary Coordinate with AFD and other agency or contracted company personnel if necessary Collect samples if necessary Communicate applicable regulations to suspected or potential responsible party No: Verify information with caller Gather all pertinent information and evidence if a spill is suspected, but not found Communicate applicable regulations to suspected or potential responsible party Complete investigation report (see report completion)
CONTAINMENT BY LOCAL OR STATE AUTHORITY
Containment by AFD when material is an immediate threat to a storm sewer or watercourse, or is a public hazard REVIEW OF MATERIAL SPILLED (MSDS) If material is positively identified, effort is made to obtain more detailed information from sources such as: MSDS, Chemtrec, Emergency Response Guidebook, and various other departmental reference books. Information is gathered to determine minimum cleanup requirements according to all applicable regulation
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Figure 7-2. Spills and Complaints Response Program Investigation Procedure continued RESPONSIBLE PARTY IDENTIFIED? Responsible party is person(s) or business causing the illegal discharge. If no responsible party can be identified, the owner of the property on which the material is spilled is responsible. Unknown property ownership is determined by accessing City of Austin utility records or Travis County tax records. Yes:
Notification of violation and request for abatement is made verbally, and in writing if necessary No:
See cleanup, storage, disposal by local or state authority CLEANUP, STORAGE, DISPOSAL BY LOCAL OR STATE AUTHORITY
If cleanup is necessary, it is performed by local or state authority (AFD or TCEQ), or contractor hired by the agency, when no responsible party has been identified.
Investigator makes recommendations on remediation methods, sample parameters, disposal methods, etc. ACCEPTING RESPONSIBILITY Yes:
Responsible party accepts responsibility verbally Recommendations are made for cleanup, storage, and disposal, verbally or in writing as necessary.
No: See referral for enforcement
REFERRAL FOR ENFORCEMENT
All documentation is gathered (MSDS, photos, field notebook entries) for filing affidavit of non-compliance in municipal court.
Notification of personnel necessary to begin enforcement process, including WPD management and legal staff
Notification of other enforcement agencies who may have jurisdiction Enforcement resulting in responsible party remediation (see cleanup, storage, disposal by responsible party)
CLEANUP, STORAGE, DISPOSAL BY RESPONSIBLE PARTY If cleanup is necessary, it is performed by the responsible party or a contractor hired by responsible party. Investigator makes recommendations on remediation methods, sample parameters disposal methods, etc.
REPORT COMPLETION
Inspection of site to ensure all visible contamination removed Review lab analyses waste manifests and other documentation of clean-up and attach to report All follow-up investigations are completed and documented
REPORT ENTERED INTO DATABASE Report is entered into Spills and Complaint Response Program database Any supporting material is filed in program files REFERRAL OF PERMITTED OR PERMITTABLE FACILITY
If spill/complaint has occurred at Stormwater Discharge Program permitted or permittable facility, the spill or complaint is referred to a Program inspector.
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Austin Fire Department Special Operations Division
Introduction
The AFD Hazardous Materials Response Team was reorganized in 2002 and was
combined with other specialty teams within AFD. The Hazardous Materials Team is
now referred to as the Special Operations Division. The Special Operations Division
supplies hazardous material response personnel, apparatus and equipment from four
fire stations located in the central, north, east and south sectors of Austin. This Division
also supplies Special Operations personnel who act as incident advisors, provide
training, evaluate new equipment and maintain specialized response equipment.
Program Activities Description
Generally, this program targets the control of potentially hazardous material spills or
other incidents that may endanger human health and safety within the City limits. The
AFD emergency response activities are not targeted to any specific industry or
business, rather the Special Operations Division is trained to handle a wide variety of
hazardous materials incidents including liquid spills, gas releases and rescues under
hazardous conditions.
In addition to providing personnel, training and equipment for emergency response, the
AFD maintains a large inventory of equipment for use during hazardous materials
incidents, including spill containment, chemical monitoring, personnel protective
clothing, confined space entry, decontamination and water rescue equipment.
Incidents are responded to in an expeditious manner with a priority given to life safety
and protection of property. Fire suppression may not be initiated due to possible run-
off of toxic substances. The "no attack" strategy has become an important
consideration during the incident pre-planning effort. Once an immediate hazard has
been alleviated, the Special Operations Division has required follow-up remediation
when a responsible party is identified, or actually performs cleanup operations. The
AFD Special Operations Division coordinates with the City of Austin WPD, TCEQ,
and the HHSD to ensure that current environmental and life safety regulations are met.
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The Special Operations Division will continue to provide emergency response
capabilities as described throughout the permit period. The City does not anticipate any
further changes to the Spill Response Program, however changes to the scope of the
program components may be considered during review of the City’s annual operating
budget.
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4. Pollution Prevention/Good Housekeeping for Municipal Operations
Introduction
In the effort to reduce the amount of pollutants discharged into local waterways from
municipal operations, the City of Austin has developed and implemented several programs.
Many of these programs are also described in detail throughout various sections in the
SWMP.
Program Activities Description
A. Pollution Prevention and Reduction/Good Housekeeping Programs
The Pollution Prevention and Reduction (PPR) programs are implemented by several
departments as described in the SWMP. The WPD has a list of all City properties and
facilities. This list is screened for the purpose of identifying facility activities that could
contribute to pollutants in storm water runoff. Site visits are prioritized based upon potential
pollutant risks. Some examples of City facilities and properties included in this program are
fleet service stations, power plants, fire stations, municipal pools, golf courses, airport
operations, the household hazardous waste facility landfills and material storage areas.
WPD PPR Staff inspects City and public facilities and properties on a rotating basis.
Inspections include confirmation of proper waste storage, handling and disposal practices;
plumbing connections to the storm sewer system; and review of housekeeping and facility
maintenance practices. In addition, staff initiates training to periodically advise City
personnel on best management practices (BMPs) and on other environmental regulatory
requirements such as Spill Prevention Controls and Countermeasures (SPCC) plans where
applicable. Periodic training is provided to facilities staff. City staff also determines which of
these facilities require coverage under the Texas Pollution Discharge Elimination System
(TPDES) mandates. Facilities that are subject to Texas (TPDES) permit requirements receive
a more detailed inspection that includes a thorough review of the facility’s Stormwater
Pollution Prevention Plan (SWP3). Staff monitors the facility’s active implementation of the
SWP3 to verify that the plan is current and site specific.
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Staff also verifies documentation of the facilities SWP3 and the description of potential
pollutants and their sources, and reviews the SWP3 for additional documentation
requirements mandated by the Multi-Sector General Permit (MSGP).
Spill and Complaints Response Program (SCRP) staff responds to emergency spill incidents
and investigates pollution complaints involving City properties. Calls are typically reported
to the City’s 24-Hour Pollution Hotline and response is rapid to prevent and/or minimize
potentially polluting discharges to the storm sewer system. Staff identifies illicit discharges
and requests that corrective actions and preventive measures be taken. Again, SCRP staff
provides training on best management practices and other environmental regulatory
requirements. Follow up visits are conducted to ensure compliance.
The ARR Litter Abatement Program targets City owned property within the City limits,
including parks, for removal of trash, litter and debris which has collected in the parks,
streets and the public rights-of way. The ARR Street Cleaning Program targets the cleaning
of curbed City streets in all areas within the City limits for removal of trash, litter and dirt
which has collected in the streets and gutters, for health, safety, aesthetic and water quality
reasons. ARR also provides convenient recycling services for municipal facilities, through
the workplace recycling program known as “Office Stream” Recycle, Reduce, Reuse,
Rethink.
The City of Austin supports Keep Austin Beautiful (KAB) which targets business and
citizens in the City of Austin, through activities that center on litter abatement, recycling,
environmental education, and beautification in Austin. WPD, Scoop the Poop Program,
partners with the Parks and Recreation Department. Pet Waste dispensers have been placed
in over half the City’s parks and facilities to encourage dog owners to clean up after their
pets. The City of Austin’s education and awareness programs are conducted by the WPD,
ARR, AW, and Austin Energy (AE). Training for internal customers, (employees), is used to
maximize participation in water quality, waste reduction, and water and energy conservation
programs. Safety training is mandatory for City employees and provided quarterly on a
variety of subjects including BMP’s for municipal operations.
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B. Waste Handling The City of Austin properly disposes of waste that is removed from the MS4, and other
municipal operations, including maintenance of storm water structural controls. For example
WPD, FOD crews when removing trapped floating materials from its two locations on Lady
Bird Lake, load the materials into City dump trucks and haul the material to an acceptable
local landfill. The materials removed from the maintenance of City of Austin storm water
structural controls are taken to a local approved landfill. FOD vactor trucks remove materials
from the City of Austin storm sewer pipes and drains. The materials are taken to a Field
Operations maintenance facility with dewatering areas, and solids are taken to an approved
local landfill. PWD takes all the litter and debris picked up from streets to an approved
landfill.
C. Pesticide, Herbicide, and Fertilizer Application
Integrated Pest Management Program Activities Description
In order to satisfy the MS4 storm water permit requirement to implement controls to reduce
the discharge of pollutants related to the storage and application of pesticide, herbicide and
fertilizers, the City of Austin uses the activities of the City’s Integrated Pest Management
(IPM) Program.
The IPM Program, managed by the WPD, will be responsible for the following activities
over the course of the permit term:
Implementation of an IPM public education campaign to educate the citizens of Austin regarding least toxic pest management and IPM;
Provide guidance to City of Austin departments and programs in pest management issues;
Review IPM plans when they are required in the land development review process;
Assisting with implementations of IPM agreements between the City and specific private local golf courses;
Ensure compliance of the Save Our Springs initiative via review of IPM plans required for private development projects in the Barton Springs Edwards Aquifer Recharge Zone;
As of December 2011, administrate the TPDES Pesticides General Permit TXG87000;
Maintain pesticide application and pesticide applicator license records for all city departments that use pesticides, except Austin Energy they have their own permit.
Manage implementation of the Invasive Species Management Plan.
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The activities listed above would target audiences such as
Homeowners and the general public in the Austin area
Professional communities including those who design, install and manage outdoor areas
Retail distributors of pest control products and gardening supplies
City of Austin employees
City of Austin contractors responsible for pest management and grounds maintenance
Conduct an IPM Public Education Campaign
The primary focus of the City’s IPM public education program is to provide information
related to IPM principles and practices and non-point source pollution that may result from
improper fertilizing and pest management practices. Program staff also provides information
related to specific IPM products, general water quality, wet ponds, xeriscaping and erosion
control practices, rain gardens, non-point source pollution and wet pond maintenance.
Information is disseminated through various means including the Grow Green/IPM websites
(www.GrowGreen.org) and (www.austintexas.gov/ipm) social media, public service
announcements, through printed material, including posters, bookmarks and brochures
distributed in displays at local gardening centers, City libraries, and other facilities, at fairs,
festivals, tradeshows, on billboards; via one-on-one conversations; and presentations to
community and professional volunteer and non-profit organizations. Program staff will
continue to utilize all of the above educational outreach methods throughout the five year
permit period.
Administration of an Internal City of Austin IPM Program
The focus of the internal City of Austin IPM program is to provide guidance to City of
Austin departments who are responsible for application of pesticides, herbicides, or
fertilizers on City-owned or managed land by staff or contractors;
Identification of one departmental IPM Special Point of Contact to be the liaison for all
pesticide and fertilizer related issues.
When requested by city staff, the IPM Coordinator conducts on-site visits, consults,
researches, advises diagnosis and treatment methods when unique IPM situations arise.
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As of December 2011, WPD administrates the TPDES General Pesticide Discharge
Permit TXG870000, which includes responsibility for permit pesticide use compliance
and documentation.
Invasive Species Management Plan: In order to address the significant economic,
ecological and health impacts of the invasive species on Austin, the City Council
approved a resolution on April 8, 2010 calling for a city-wide plan for invasive species
management. The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center was hired to develop the plan,
and it was completed in 2012. The interdepartmental Invasive Species Management Plan
executive committee has finalized the management protocols section.
Administration of an IPM Program for Private Development Projects
As stated previously, the City of Austin Land Development Code requires certain
development projects to prepare and submit an IPM plan for the proposed development.
IPM plans for Water quality Protection are required when one or more of the following
conditions exist;
If it is to occur within identified environmentally sensitive areas and watersheds within
the City’s planning jurisdiction;
On intensive landscape management sites such as athletic fields and golf courses. These
require customized IPM plans due to pests being more likely to be specialized.
When a City Council or Boards and Commissions requires an IPM plan.
To qualify for Green Building certification credits.
Specific Water Quality Treatment Systems for commercial properties, including;
The IPM program staff review proposed private IPM plans for the minimum pollution
prevention and source control measures outlined in the City of Austin Environmental Criteria
Manual and provide approval. IPM program components required by the Environmental
Criteria Manual include:
Lists of any pests (insects, mammals, plant disease, weeds, etc.) anticipated to require control
For each pest, a hierarchy of treatments must be developed beginning with cultural, mechanical, biological and other non-toxic controls and ending with chemical control.
A description of the monitoring plan, damage level or other method to be used to determine when treatments are necessary
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A list of control products included in the hierarchies, identified by active ingredients and toxicity class, if necessary
A description of the project for which the plan has been developed (commercial, residential, etc.), including approximate acreage of each landscape type(s) (i.e., turf, ornamental, etc.)
A list of any watercourse, creek, spring, pond, storm sewer inlet, sinkhole, cave or fault within 150 feet of the area to be maintained. Fifty to One-hundred fifty foot pesticide and fertilizer setbacks from these features are required.
The IPM plans are considered dynamic documents that may be amended to eliminate
measures proven to be ineffective, add additional measures, amend pest control hierarchies or
address pest problems that may arise after the original IPM plan submittal. However, all
amendments to IPM plans must be submitted and obtain IPM Program staff approval.
Program staff also provides technical guidance as needed and continually updates model pest
management plans. Program staff will continue reviewing, commenting and approving IPM
plans for private development projects throughout the five year permit period.
The City does not anticipate any changes to the Integrated Pest Management Program.
However changes to the scope of this program may be considered during review of the City’s
annual operating budget.
D. List of Municipal Facilities See Appendix G
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5. Industrial and High Risk Program
Industrial and High Risk Inspection Program
Introduction The goal of the City's Industrial and High Risk Runoff Program is to identify and control
pollutants in storm water discharges to the municipal separate storm sewer system (MS4).
This goal will be achieved through the establishment of priorities and procedures for
inspections and monitoring of the industrial facilities identified in
§ 122.26 (d) (2) (IV) (C) of the NPDES regulations.
Program Activities Description
The Industrial and High Risk Program will be based on the activities of the AFD
Aboveground Hazardous Material Permit Program and the WPD programs related to the
inspection of municipal landfills and industrial facilities the City may determine as
potentially contributing a substantial pollutant load to the municipal storm sewer system.
Hazardous waste treatment, disposal or recovery facilities and facilities subject to SARA
Title III: The permitting of hazardous material locations in Austin began in 1985 with City
Council approval of the Hazardous Materials Ordinance. Since that time the AFD
Aboveground Hazardous Materials Permit Program has been permitting and conducting
inspections of facilities that store or handle hazardous materials. As defined in the
International Fire Code (IFC) and Local Amendments, industries and commercial facilities
storing hazardous materials that meet the following requirements are required to obtain an
Aboveground Hazardous Materials Storage Permit:
The Hazardous Material has a health, flammability, or instability rating of 2 or more as defined in the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Standard 704.
The Hazardous Material is stored or used aboveground in quantities exceeding the amounts specified in the Local Amendments to the IFC. These quantities are dependent upon the classification of the material as a health, flammability or instability hazard, and whether their NFPA 704 hazard rating is 2, 3, or 4.
The Hazardous Material is a compressed or liquefied compressed gas in a quantity exceeding 100 cu. Ft at NTP
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The Aboveground Hazardous Materials Permit Program has identified approximately
2,087 facilities in the Austin city limits that meet the above noted criteria. These facilities are
issued Aboveground Hazardous Materials Storage Permits that are renewed every three
years. These locations are subject to periodic, routine inspections to ensure proper storage,
handling and disposal practices. Of the total number of facilities included in the
Aboveground Hazardous Materials Storage Permit Program, there are approximately 285
above ground storage/use facilities that are considered Texas Tier Two facilities. None of
these facilities are known to be federally permitted hazardous waste treatment, storage or
disposal facilities. The Tier Two facilities are subject to the federal (EPCRA Title III) and
state "Community Right to Know” reporting requirements and as such, provide the AFD with
all the reports required by the regulations. The AFD currently inspects the Tier Two facilities
on an as needed basis, usually in response to new construction permit approvals, or as a result
of citizen complaints. During inspections, AFD reviews the facility's hazardous material
storage, handling and disposal practices and enforces City and IFC requirements. Many of
the Fire Code requirements that are enforced have the potential to impact storm water
discharges at the facility.
These requirements include, but are not limited to
proper storage of raw and finished materials
proper spill control, drainage control and secondary containment
prohibitions on unauthorized discharges
proper procedures for outdoor storage, dispensing and use of materials
leak detection, leak reporting and emergency shut-off equipment maintenance practices If during facility inspections or reviews AFD observes practices or procedures that may
affect storm water discharge quality but are not violations of the IFC, the City’s Pollution
Hotline will be notified and an inspection by WPD will be initiated. In addition to
coordinating efforts with the WPD, AFD also coordinates its permitting activities with the
TCEQ, and the HHSD. Coordination with these agencies should result in the identification of
additional facilities that have not obtained an AFD Aboveground Hazardous Materials
Permit.
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Municipal Landfills: The City of Austin currently has no active landfill locations. As such,
the City has implemented a program to investigate inactive landfills that is directed primarily
by WPD, with assistance from the AW, and the ARR.
The goals of the Inactive Municipal Landfill Investigation Program include enforcing code
provisions, preventing polluting discharges to waterways, eliminating nuisance conditions
and preventing hazardous public health conditions. These goals are accomplished by:
locating and identifying older closed and abandoned landfills in the City of Austin
performing periodic visual inspections of each site as necessary
collecting and analyzing leachate from selected sites as necessary
prioritizing potential problem sites for future investigations and land use planning
plotting all locations on base maps and digitizing locations into a geographic information system
providing information to City staff and interested citizens
using centralized files for landfill information; and
responding to citizen-generated complaints, requests for information from the general public, and information requests by private firms conducting environmental audits.
Forty-six former landfills have been inspected in the Austin area. Additional sites have also
been identified that appear to contain only buried construction debris. Efforts to investigate
former landfill sites will continue to be coordinated with the TCEQ, HHSD, AFD, and Travis
County environmental staff as appropriate.
Investigations of specific sites will also be conducted based on complaints or evidence of a
particular pollution problem. When investigated, sites are examined for access, proximity to
waterways, presence of exposed waste, odors, landfill gas generation, land subsidence,
erosion or cracking of waste cover, water ponding, vegetative stress, leachate discharge,
conditions of adjacent waterways and presence of structures or buried utility lines. Surface
water, groundwater or leachate samples may be collected to determine public health threats
or environmental hazards. Photographs may also be taken to document site conditions and
demonstrate changes that occur over time.
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During the five year permit period, WPD staff will provide visual inspections:
periodically at the inactive municipal sites
at initiation of remediation activities at selected sites and
upon receipt of complaints or reports of pollution problems Industrial facilities that the municipality determines may contribute a substantial pollutant
load to the municipal storm sewer system: In the effort to identify facilities that may be
contributing a substantial pollutant load to the City's municipal storm sewer system (MS4),
the WPD Storm Sewer Discharge Permit Program (SDPP) has implemented a database of
industrial and high-risk facilities discharging to the City's MS4 within the Austin city limits.
The SDPP staff will continue to utilize the TCEQ NOI database and information gathered
during field inspections by the AFD and other City departments to populate and maintain
information in the database. In addition, the SDPP will send out periodic surveys to:
industrial facilities the City has identified as high-risk based on the criteria listed in §122.26 (d)(2)(iv)(C) of the NPDES regulations; and
facilities required to obtain TPDES industrial storm water permit coverage.
The survey includes specific questions related to the facilities operations, maintenance practices and activities that may contribute pollutants to storm water discharges. The survey also requests that the facility certify that one of the three following scenarios is accurate:
The facility is not an industrial facility required to obtain TPDES Storm Water Permit coverage;
The facility currently has a TPDES Storm Water Permit; or
The facility is eligible to use the "No Exposure" exclusion for TPDES Storm Water Permit coverage.
If the facility has obtained a TPDES Storm Water Permit, the SDPP requests that the operator
submit a letter certifying that a Storm Water Pollution Prevention Plan (SWP3) has been
developed and is available for viewing by inspectors. The SDPP also requires that the
operator submit a copy of any monitoring results for the facility (if monitoring is required).
SDPP staff will review the monitoring results submitted by each facility, and if the results are
questionable, SDPP staff may conduct a facility inspection.
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SDPP may also conduct a facility inspection if questionable structures or activities are
identified during inspections by other City departments. When a facility is identified as
requiring a TPDES storm water permit but does not currently possess proper permit
coverage, SDPP staff will inform facility representatives of the TPDES regulations and their
responsibilities to obtain permit coverage. If the facility does not obtain proper permit
coverage or is violating provisions of a storm water permit, SDPP staff will report the facility
to the appropriate permitting agency, in most cases the TCEQ, for possible enforcement
action.
Over the five year permit period the City will continue the industrial and high-risk inspection
activities as described, focusing primarily on:
Tier II facilities included in the AFD Aboveground Hazardous Materials Permit Program,
Inactive landfills, and
Facilities identified as posing the greatest threat to discharge pollutants to the City’s MS4 through the City's survey and inspection efforts.
The SDPP will continue efforts to identify permit and inspect facilities located within both
the Barton Springs Zone (BSZ) and the Full Purpose City limits that conduct activities with a
high potential for illicit discharges of pollutants. Staff targets facilities with activities such as
motor rebuilding and repair, machine shop services, transmission rebuilding and repair,
radiator repair, fuel storage and dispensing facilities. During inspections of facilities, SDPP
staff will confirm proper waste storage, handling and disposal practices, inspect plumbing
connections to the storm sewer system and review housekeeping and facility maintenance
practices. SDPP staff may also recommend best management practices that are appropriate
for the facility during facility inspections.
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Underground Storage Tank
The Underground Storage Tank (UST) Leak Detection Program continues to focus efforts on
all permittable facilities with underground storage tanks found within both the Barton
Springs Zone (BSZ) and the Full Purpose City limits. The UST Program staff conducts
inspections of identified facilities, and construction of new facilities ensuring compliance
with City Water Quality Codes, including proper storage, monitoring and leak detection
activities. The UST Program staff recommends best management practices and provides
educational materials applicable to each operation as needed and during permit review and
renewals. The UST Program will issue both storage and/or construction permits to identify
facilities in the targeted BSZ area.
Monitoring
Most of the EPCRA Title III facilities found in the Austin area are included in one of the
industrial activity SIC codes or in one of the narrative industrial activity descriptions that
require storm water permit coverage. As such, the City of Austin will not conduct any storm
water discharge monitoring at facilities where the terms of the TPDES storm water permit are
considered by the City to be sufficient, and if the review of the monitoring results (based on
monitoring conducted by the facility) are in compliance. If the SDPP staff determines that the
monitoring results submitted to the City by the facility are not in compliance, a letter will be
sent to the facility requesting compliance. If repeated non-compliance occurs, the program
will notify the appropriate permitting agency, TCEQ, for possible enforcement action. If it is
determined that a facility included in either the AFD or SDPP high-risk inspection program
does not meet the eligibility requirements for TPDES storm water permit coverage, a self-
monitoring and reporting program may be established for the facility.
The City does not anticipate any changes to the Industrial and High Risk Program. However
changes to the scope of the program components may be considered during review of the
City’s annual operating budget.
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6. Construction Site Storm Water Runoff
A. Site Development Plan Regulations
As noted in the Areas of New Development and Significant Redevelopment section two of
the Storm Water Management Program, the City of Austin requires the approval of a site
plan and release of a site development permit for multifamily or commercial development on
a specific parcel of land. For a detailed description of responsibilities and procedures related
to the site development plan regulations, please refer to the Areas of New Development and
Significant Redevelopment section of the SWMP.
B. Construction Waste
PDRD Environmental Inspectors inspect all projects which have site development plans
during construction for compliance with BMPs and with the erosion and sedimentation
control plan and the water quality/detention plan. The erosion and sedimentation control plan
shows appropriate areas for staging, construction waste, spoils, concrete washout, dumpsters
for litter and sanitary waste from porta-toilets. The pre-construction meeting handout
includes a page stating “all spoils, fill, and waste from the construction site is required to go
to an approved land fill.” The inspector can request trip tickets from construction site
managers to verify where the construction waste and spoils have been taken.
C. Inspection of Sites during Construction
Introduction
The Environmental Inspection Section of the PDRD is responsible for ensuring field
enforcement of City water quality regulations, as found in the specific conditions of approved
development permits. PDRD Environmental Inspectors take the lead role for environmental
field inspection of all projects issued site development permits. The PDRD Site Subdivision
Inspectors take the lead role on environmental field inspections on subdivision construction
projects. The Construction Inspection (CIP) Section of Public Works has the lead authority
for inspection of CIP Projects, including environmental site inspections. PDRD Site
Subdivision Inspectors monitor compliance with approved erosion and sedimentation control
plans ESC on subdivision construction plans. PWD Construction Inspectors monitor ESC’s
on CIP projects.
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PDRD Environmental Inspectors provide assistance on monitoring and take enforcement
actions relating to site construction sequencing of water quality and drainage structures,
and maintenance of erosion and sedimentation control (ESC) plans. Proper construction of
subdivision on-site drainage facilities and water quality controls is monitored by PDRD Site
& Subdivision Inspectors during the construction process. The purpose of this program is to
inspect development projects to ensure compliance with requirements of valid development
permits and approved (ESC) plans; and to ensure proper construction of on-site drainage
facilities and water quality controls during the construction process.
Currently, all construction and development projects involving land-disturbing activities
within the City and ETJ are required to use erosion and sedimentation controls in accordance
with technical guidelines found in the City’s Environmental Criteria Manual (ECM), and
Drainage Criteria Manual (DCM).
Program Activities Description
At the commencement of development or construction activity, the project site
engineer/manager is required to contact the supervisor of the PDRD Environmental
Inspection, PDRD Construction Inspection and/or PWD Construction Inspection Section. A
pre-construction meeting is conducted at project inception, to verify installation of the ESC’s
and BMP’s per the approved plan, and followed by regular site inspections.
If during site inspections the inspector finds the applicable ESC plans to be inadequate at a
given site, minor modifications to the approved ESC plan and construction sequencing plan
may be made in the field to upgrade erosion controls without written PDRD approval. Major
modifications may require a plan correction. At the final inspection, the appropriate inspector
confirms the proper completion of runoff and water quality controls, permanent ESC controls
and site restoration as a prerequisite to project acceptance or issuance of a certificate of
occupancy.
If a development project is found in non-compliance with conditions of the development
permit during a site visit, an inspector may give the project manager a verbal warning with
instructions to achieve compliance within 24 to 48 hours. This action is followed by a written
warning if remedial action was not taken to resolve the problems.
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If corrective actions to bring about compliance are not achieved, a cease-and-desist order
may be issued, whereby all work at the project site is stopped until compliance is achieved. A
"red-tag" is posted at the site, and a written notice of the cease-and-desist order is mailed to
the alleged violator with an explanation of the site factors resulting in non-compliance. If a
development project is found to be without a valid development permit and in non-
compliance with applicable water quality regulations, or a high priority violation exists, a
cease-and-desist order may be issued immediately. In addition, PDRD will continue to
dedicate environmental inspectors to the Barton Springs Zone (BSZ) to ensure development
projects comply with applicable erosion control standards.
This program coordinates with and assists inspectors from other governmental entities in
controlling erosion from active construction sites. Such inspection coordination most
commonly occurs with Travis County and the TCEQ. Citizens in the Austin area call
Environmental Inspection with complaints and requests for inspections, on sites that appear
to not be in compliance with the site development permit or might not have a site
development permit. Environmental Inspection investigates these complaints, or requests for
inspection, and documents the investigation and reports the findings to the concerned citizen.
D. Public Education for Construction Site Operators
Introduction
In the effort to reduce the amount of pollutants discharged into local waterways from
construction related activities, the City of Austin has developed and implemented a variety of
public information and education tools for construction site operators and the development
community.
Program Activities Description
The City provides educational information related to storm water management techniques
such as erosion and sedimentation controls, construction sequencing, permanent water
quality controls and site restoration activities. Information has also been developed related to
construction site pollution prevention activities and “green building.”
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The City provides this information to developers and construction site operators in the
following ways:
Written materials
One-on-one meetings
Training and seminars Written Materials
The City has found that written materials are an effective tool in communicating regulatory
guidelines, technical guidance and basic non-technical information to both the development
and construction communities. The WPD and PDRD have developed many of these
documents that range from fact sheets on good housekeeping practices for construction sites
to detailed criteria for the design and implementation of various storm water control
structures. The Green Building Program has also developed a Sustainable Building
Sourcebook that has chapters on storm water management alternatives, pervious paving and
rainwater harvesting.
One-on-One Meetings
The City’s Development Assistance Center (DAC) provides the first one-on-one interaction
with the development community. During the initial discussions, City staff provides general
information and guidance to the development proponents related to the various permit
applications, certification and regulatory requirements that may be associated with their
particular type of development project. At this time, staff also provides many of the written
materials discussed previously. DAC also has environmental, water quality & drainage staff
to assist with issues contractors, consultants, and citizens may encounter.
During the project review and approval process, PDRD staff members assigned to projects
continually coordinate with the project proponents to resolve many of the details related to
the site specific environmental needs, including the particular erosion control and
sedimentation requirements. PDRD staff also meets with the development proponents and
on-site operators on site. At this meeting, site specific information is discussed and many of
the on-site details related to erosion control, land disturbance sequencing, and critical
environmental feature protection and pollution prevention are worked out with the
appropriate contractors.
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Finally, PDRD Environmental Inspectors work with on-site operators during routine site
inspections. During inspections, Environmental inspectors provide any necessary technical
assistance and advise on-site operators of additional maintenance or improved water quality
protection activities that may be necessary at the site.
Training and Seminars
The City has developed and implemented several training courses that provide storm water
management and pollution prevention information to the development and construction
communities.
The following are the types of training tools utilized:
Topic Specific Presentations
Technical Seminars & Workshops
Conferences & Trade Shows
Many of the training tools have been crafted for the development and construction
communities, but City staff is also encouraged to participate and generally take advantage of
the training opportunities. A variety of other workshops have been developed specifically for
the City’s construction project management and inspection staff in to relate regulatory
requirements and provide superior inspection services to new and redevelopment projects.
The City does not anticipate any changes to the Construction Site Runoff Program. However
changes to the scope of the program components may be considered during review of the
City’s annual operating budget.
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7. Public Education and Involvement
A. Public Education
1. Water Quality Education and Awareness Programs Introduction
The City of Austin’s public education and awareness programs are conducted by the WPD,
and ARR. Advertising, education, both internal and external, and outreach activities are used
to maximize participation in water quality, waste reduction and conservation programs. The
target audience for educational programs includes homeowners, students, businesses and
professionals.
The Policy and Planning Division of the WPD has primary responsibility for the
management of the water quality component of these programs. ARR is responsible for the
trash abatement, hazardous chemical and recycling components. When possible, these
departments have formed partnerships to increase their ability to reach a larger audience with
a wider, yet compatible, message.
Program Activities Description
The public education and awareness efforts of the City of Austin encompass a number of
different elements reflecting the wide variety of water quality-related programs that are
supported by the City. Specific elements, which will likely continue through the permit
period include the following:
Grow Green – This interdepartmental homeowner and landscape professional outreach program provides Earth-Wise gardening tips in nearly all of the nurseries and the big box retail in Travis County. The Watershed Education group coordinates this effort to provide “one-stop shopping” for citizens for all their gardening needs. Six City departments participate and address water quality, water conservation, composting Dillo Dirt, The Don’t Bag It Program among other issues. The effort helps prevent duplication of effort and provide cost savings. Display units contain a wide variety of fact sheets to help homeowners make informed decisions on least toxic alternatives for their yard care at the point of purchase for pesticides and fertilizers. A full-color Native and Adapted Plant Guide is also available to encourage the use of plants that require fewer pesticides and less water, and is available as an online searchable database. Grow Green offers classes for homeowner’s and a Landscape Professional Training series.
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Integrated Pest Management – The City’s IPM program produces brochures, posters and a web page (under the auspices of the Grow Green program) containing information on least toxic pest management techniques. Presentations and public appearances on TV and radio also supplement the public outreach activities of this program. Grow Green includes television spots that ask homeowners to avoid inappropriate use of pesticides in the spring gardening season. Assistance to City of Austin staff and the general public is offered via a telephone assistance line.
Earth Camp - The camp is offered to fifth grade students in the lower socio-economic areas of Austin and focuses on watershed and aquifer education. Earth Camp provides teacher training, curriculum and materials for classroom lessons, as well as field trips, outdoor activities and environmental expertise, all of which are provided free of charge. Components include water quality testing, lessons on macro-invertebrates, green gardening, cave tours and visits to Splash! Into the Edwards Aquifer, a hands-on, interactive educational exhibit. A teacher-led version of Earth Camp allows teachers who have attended regular Earth Camp to come back, and lead the following year. The City supports this program with full time and temporary staff, training, equipment, and bus funding.
Earth School - This one-hour, in-school lesson provides hands-on watershed and aquifer education to Austin Independent School District (AISD) and Eanes Independent School district (EISD) fifth graders. Using models developed by WPD and other educational sources, students learn how storm water carries pollutants to creeks and aquifers. Earth Camp, teacher Led Earth Camp, or Earth School are offered to 100% of AISD elementary schools.
Watershed Detectives – The middle school curriculum involves students in a hands-on simulation of an investigation of a real live fish – kill. Students use topographic maps and a watershed model to determine flow paths and then locate the source of contamination by conducting simulated tests.
Hydrofiles - This program teaches high school students how to monitor water quality in our creeks. Classes are also given the opportunity to go on field trips to local creeks or caves.
Storm Drain Marking - Volunteers are recruited to affix tile markers to storm drains, informing citizens, “No Dumping, Drains to Creek”. The tiles are available in both English and Spanish.
Scoop the Poop: In partnership with the Parks and Recreation Department, pet waste bag dispensers have been placed in City parks to encourage dog owners to clean up after their pets. The program also partners with dog focused non-profits to raise awareness about the importance of picking up pet waste by distributing branded giveaways and including educational articles in newsletters and social media.
East Austin Environmental Initiative (EAEI) - The WPD publishes the Eastside Environmental News, a biannual newsletter that has hard copies and electronic versions which focus on environmental issues and City activities affecting east Austin communities. Staff may participate in community events such as neighborhood cleanups, meetings, and special events.
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Austin Enviro Mechanics – This program is a cooperative effort between WPD and local businesses. The program encourages businesses to adopt shop practices that keep pollutants from entering storm drains and waterways. Those who participate are given rewards that benefit both the shop operators and their customers. During the reporting period an online app was developed to help citizens find the closest business to properly dispose of their used oil and other automotive related materials.
Shade Tree Mechanic – This program is targeted at do it yourself citizens who like to take care of vehicles. During this reporting period a video about the importance of being careful to avoid and cleanup spills while changing oil was created.
Some additional programs currently created for the education programs are: Printed Material - Watershed and Aquifer Education:
Brochures, posters, and signage are produced as new needs are defined.
Media: As funding allows, the City will run advertisements and radio spots in the local media
to promote water quality education.
As noted in the introduction, City departments have formed partnerships to increase their
ability to reach a larger audience. The City of Austin also coordinates its various public
education and awareness efforts with other governmental entities. Partners have included
Austin Independent School District, Lower Colorado River Authority, Keep Austin
Beautiful, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and The Barton Springs/Edwards Aquifer
Conservation District the Friends of the Colorado River, Children in Nature Collaborative of
Austin, and other groups.
B. Public Involvement and Participation
1. Keep Austin Beautiful Program
Introduction
Keep Austin Beautiful (KAB) Program is a 501(c) (3) non-profit organization, officially
certified affiliate of Keep America Beautiful. KAB’s core purpose is to inspire and educate
individuals and our community towards greater environmental stewardship. It operates with
the support of the City of Austin, Travis County, local businesses, community groups and
citizens. Extensive coordination occurs between the KAB program staff and the staff of City
and County programs that benefit from KAB’s public education and awareness efforts in the
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areas of water quality, non-point source pollution, littering, recycling and beautification.
Continuing support of this program is provided yearly by the City of Austin and Travis
County through funding approval during budget cycles.
Responsibility for the operations of the program rest with the KAB staff and policy and
oversight is the responsibility of a volunteer board of directors. The programs of KAB target
all business and citizens in the greater Austin area through activities, that center on litter
abatement, recycling, environmental education and beautification. KAB has the following
primary goals:
To Clean, Beautify and Protect the Austin Environment through physical improvements and hands-on education.
Clean - Removing litter from our neighborhoods, streets, schools, parks and public spaces, and promoting a litter-free Austin.
Beautify - Empowering and supporting schools, neighborhood groups and local businesses in efforts to beautify their communities and restore habitats.
Educate - Promoting environmental stewardship through presentations, hands-on activities and service-learning projects.
Effectiveness of the Keep Austin Beautiful Program has been measured utilizing a number of parameters including;
estimated litter reduction
the number of river and creek clean-up events sponsored each year
the number of student and teachers reached through the education program
the number of promotional materials distributed
the number of volunteer hours donated to the community
Program Activities Description
The KAB board and staff develop and implement projects and programs in the areas of
cleanup, beautification, habitat and creek restoration, and education. Major activities
sponsored or supported through the efforts of KAB in past years have included the following:
Environmental Education - Providing environmental presentations and activities to students and youth
Recycling - Promoting rethinking, reducing renewing, reusing, and recycling
Awards - Recognizing positive behavior in all segments of the community
Clean Sweep - Providing opportunities for grassroots involvement in city-wide clean-ups
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Community Cleanups - Providing opportunities for grassroots involvement in cleanups year-round
Adopt a Creek - providing the community with an opportunity to take ownership of local creeks and help keep them clean. KAB anticipates these activities will continue over the five year permit period. In addition
KAB will continue to coordinate its program with public agencies with the same or similar
environmental focus. These include the City of Austin, Travis County, LCRA and TCEQ,
Texas General Land Office, AISD and the University of Texas at Austin, Austin Community
College, Capital Area Council of Governments and Texas Department of Transportation.
2. Pollution Hotline Public Education
Introduction
In the effort to protect water quality, the City of Austin established a 24-Hour Pollution
Hotline for citizens to report pollution concerns in 1986. The City has promoted the Pollution
Hotline in a variety of ways over the years and the WPD Spills and Complaint Response
Program (SCRP) staff now investigates approximately 1,450 pollution complaints each year,
the majority of which are citizen pollution complaints received through the Pollution Hotline.
The increase in calls to the Pollution Hotline over the years is believed to be in large part due
to the increase in public awareness about the reporting system and not just an increase in the
number of incidents occurring in the Austin area.
Program Activities Description
The Pollution Hotline is a system that allows the general public to report pollution 24 hours a
day, seven days a week. The hotline is answered by a WPD staff member during normal
business hours and by an automated voice mail and paging system after hours. The SCRP
staff investigates the complaints received on the hotline, identifying the pollutants, the
potential pollutant sources and the party responsible for the illicit discharge. All complaints
received on the Pollution Hotline are treated as anonymous complaints and the WPD makes
every effort attempt to keep complainants' names confidential. The SCRP staff believes
citizens are more inclined to use the public reporting system if there is an attempt to restrict
access to their names.
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The WPD promotes public reporting of illicit discharges and improper disposal activities on
the hotline in a variety of ways, with some of the Pollution Hotline promotional materials
published in both Spanish and English. The following is a list of promotional materials and
activities the City uses:
Newsletters, fact sheets and specific promotional materials such as brochures and magnets are provided to the public at trade shows, libraries, community centers, community events and a variety of speaking engagements
The WPD web site provides information on the Pollution Hotline, the SCRP activities and common pollutants and potential sources
Radio announcements, newspaper advertisements and periodic press releases to the media are used to publicize the hotline, the SCRP and specific pollution prevention initiatives
Magnets, brochures and door hangers promoting the Pollution Hotline, the SCRP and specific pollution prevention practices are provided to citizens by SCRP staff during complaint investigations
Other City Department staff provides Pollution Hotline magnets and materials to the public at their offices and during field inspections The WPD and the SCRP will continue to promote the Pollution Hotline and facilitate public
reporting of illicit discharges and improper disposal activities in the Austin area during the
five year permit period.
3. Austin Resource Recovery Public Education
Introduction
The ARR implements education programs that reduce the generation of litter and promote
proper disposal of household hazardous waste.
Program Activities Description
Pay-As-You-Throw Educational Support Pay-As-You-Throw (PAYT) is a garbage collection system that aggressively encourages
recycling and “smart” trash habits. The PAYT program reaches residential and commercial
customers through billboards, print ads, utility bill inserts and the City's web site.
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Curbside Single Stream Recycling Educational Support
The Curbside Single Stream Recycling Program provides weekly collection of newspaper,
corrugated cardboard, glass bottles and jars, and tin and aluminum cans and many plastic
bottles to all households served by City garbage collection. The program includes the Block
Leader Program and Recycling Pays projects to promote public awareness and participation
in the program.
The Recycling Program reaches the various audiences through brochures, magnets,
billboards, radio ads, public service announcements, print ads, seasonal event fliers, compost
kitchen buckets made from recycled materials, rulers and pencils made from 50% post-
consumer material.
Household Hazardous Waste Collection Facility Education
The City of Austin operates a permanent facility to collect hazardous home chemicals from
Austin and Travis County residences a minimum of twice a week in the effort to direct the
citizenry to properly dispose of waste and prevent disposal in the landfill or dumping on the
ground where chemicals can cause pollution. A key to the HHW Program's long-term
success is effective public education on aspects of waste reduction, pollution prevention and
consumer behavior.
The program's educational mission is to encourage the use and purchase of non-toxic or less-
toxic alternative products, wise consumer practices, and to avoid purchase or acquisition of
materials and products that may not be used. One of the program goals is for individual
residents or participants to need HHW programs less often and for less material in the future.
Information is provided over the telephone, webpages, to ARR/AW customers through utility
bills, fliers, newspaper advertising, presentations to area schools, professional organizations,
and environmental conferences, and outreach at the facility during collection activities.
Public education and information efforts will be reviewed each year.
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4. Barton Spring Zone Specific Education
Over the five year permit period the WPD will continue the following activities:
Maintain the educational signage at Barton Springs Pool that explains how the Edwards Aquifer functions and provides information on the Barton Springs Salamander, and Austin Blind Salamander endangered species that reside in the Barton Springs.
Maintain two education stations at the Splash! Groundwater education exhibit.
Coordinate storm drain marking activities in portions of the Barton Springs Zone watersheds within the permit area.
The City does not anticipate any changes to the Public Education Program. However changes
to the scope of the program components may be considered during review of the City’s
annual operating budget.
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8. Monitoring Programs A. Dry Weather Screening Introduction
The general topography of the City of Austin is characterized by a large number of natural
creeks and tributaries that serve as the primary conveyance of storm water through the City.
For this reason, the typical storm sewer pipe system is short in length and serves to carry
storm water runoff from a limited drainage area to the nearest waterway. The result is a
municipal separate storm sewer system (MS4) that is comprised of numerous small pipe
networks and many outfalls. In past dry weather screening activities, relatively few outfalls
were found to have dry weather flow.
Program Activities Description
The goal of the dry weather screening program will again be to screen a proportionate
number of storm water outfalls within the City of Austin MS4 during the five year permit
term, focusing screening efforts in several watersheds each year, and using a ratio of
outfalls screened to total number of outfalls to calculate and report the percent of MS4 in
which outfall evaluations have been completed. Storm water outfalls with a diameter of 36
inches or larger identified and located during the first permit term and additional outfalls
identified for inclusion in the screening program will be screened, based on visual
observation of flow during field investigation activities.
Program Procedures
During dry weather periods (no rainfall in the previous three days), Storm Water Monitoring
Program staff will physically locate each targeted outfall. Once an outfall has been located in
the field, the physical description of the outfall will be recorded in a field logbook. The
physical characteristics to be recorded will include the dimensions of the storm sewer pipe, a
description of any stains, deposition or vegetative growth present and any other site-specific
information that may be relative to the screening efforts. If flow exists at an outfall, a sample
will be collected and flow conditions, discharge color and odor information will be recorded.
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Samples will be tested for pH, TDS, temperature, ammonia, chlorine, detergents, TPH,
fluoride, potassium and chromium using Hach field test kits and hand held Oakton probes to
help determine the possible source. The City’s Spills and Complaints Response Program
(SCRP) staff will be notified of the flow and results of the analyses. If flow is present at an
outfall, the outfall will be resampled after eight hours but before 24 hours to determine if any
changes in the discharge have occurred. Any change in analyses will be reported to SCRP.
Program Schedule
As noted previously, the Storm Water Monitoring Program staff will work in dry weather
periods throughout the permit period to evaluate storm water outfalls in each of the twenty-
eight watersheds found within the City’s permit area. Building on experience from the
screening during the first permit, the dry weather screening program will focus on fewer
watersheds, concentrating on those most likely to have illicit connections.
The following is a list of the watersheds that will be included in the screening program:
Blunn Boggy
Country Club E Country Club W
Huck’s Slough Johnson
Tannehill Taylor Slough S.
Walnut West Bouldin
Bull East Bouldin Little Walnut Taylor Slough N. West Bull Buttermilk Fort Branch Shoal Lady Bird Carson Harper’s Branch South Boggy Waller
B. Wet Weather Screening
Introduction
The general topography of the City of Austin is characterized by a large number of natural
streams and tributaries that serve as the primary conveyance of storm water through the City.
As such, the municipal separate storm sewer system (MS4) is comprised of numerous pipe
networks that carry storm water runoff from a limited drainage area to the nearest waterway.
Program Activities Description
In order to satisfy the TPDES storm water permit requirements related to wet weather
monitoring, the City of Austin will use a visual assessment to provide a post-storm event
evaluation of the storm water runoff in the Austin area waterways.
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The program will be implemented over the five year permit term, using watersheds as the
basis for defining the City’s MS4 and measuring program progress. The City anticipates that
the wet weather monitoring program will accomplish the following objectives over the
permit period:
Provide a tool to detect excessive levels of pollutants in waterways after storm events
Provide information related to the type of pollutants present in waterways after storm events
Provide a tool for investigating the origin of pollutants
Provide a limited assessment of storm water impact on aquatic life
Provide a tool to detect acute pollution events
Site Selection
Because the majority of the MS4 discharges into nearby waterways, the City will use
watersheds to define the MS4 areas and track the progression of the monitoring activities.
The proposed monitoring sites within each watershed have been selected based on the
following criteria:
within the City’s permit area
along the main stem of the stream
longitudinal distribution along the stream length
ability for staff to access site safely
ability to determine the MS4 area discharging to the stream segment upstream of the site;
Site Locations
The wet weather monitoring program will complete visual assessments of storm water flow
in the following watersheds:
Barton Dry Creek Little Walnut Taylor Slough N Blunn Eanes North Boggy Taylor Slough S Bull East Bouldin Onion Waller Buttermilk Fort Branch Shoal Walnut Carson Harper’s Branch Slaughter West Bouldin Country Club E Country Club W Huck’s Slough South Boggy West Bull Decker Johnson Tannehill Branch Williamson
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Program Procedures
Each watershed monitoring site(s) will be screened at least once during the permit term. A
visual assessment of storm water flow will be completed at each monitoring site within 36
hours of a storm event. For the purposes of this monitoring program, a storm event will be
defined as any event with greater than 0.10 inches of rain. After determining that a storm
event has occurred within the target watersheds, WPD staff will conduct a visual evaluation
related to the type of pollutants that may be present in the storm water flow at each
monitoring site. WPD staff will review each monitoring site assessment form for indications
of elevated pollutant levels. If unusual conditions exist at a monitoring location, the WPD
Spills and Complaint Response Program (SCRP) may be notified and a complaint
investigation could be initiated. If, during an assessment, site conditions indicate that an
acute pollutant event may have occurred, the SCRP will be notified immediately, and the
SCRP investigator will respond to initiate a detailed investigation of the situation.
Program Schedule
WPD staff will complete an assessment at each monitoring site at least once during the
permit period. In doing so, the City will have completed the required wet weather screening
of the City’s MS4, as defined for the purposes of this monitoring program.
C. Industrial and High Risk Monitoring
Introduction
The AFD and WPD have an Industrial and High Risk Runoff Program that identifies and
prioritizes facilities that have the potential to discharge pollutants into the municipal separate
storm sewer system (MS4). As part of this effort, staff identify facilities eligible for
NPDES/TPDES storm water discharge permit coverage and request that analytical
monitoring data collected by the facility (to comply with state or federal permit
requirements) be submitted to the City for review.
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Program Activities Description
As noted in the Industrial and High Risk Runoff section of the Storm Water Management
Program, most of the type 1 and 2 facilities found in the Austin area are included in one of
the industrial activity SIC codes or narrative industrial activity descriptions that require storm
water permit coverage. As such, the City of Austin will not conduct any storm water
discharge monitoring at facilities where the terms of the TPDES storm water permit are
considered by the City to be sufficient, and if the review of the monitoring results (based on
monitoring conducted by the facility) are in compliance. This will avoid unnecessary cost
and duplication of efforts. If the WPD staff determines that the monitoring results submitted
to the City by the facility are not in compliance, a letter will be sent to the facility requesting
compliance. If repeated non-compliance occurs, the program will notify the appropriate
permitting agency, either EPA or TCEQ, for possible enforcement action. If it is determined
that a type 1 or 2 facility included in either the AFD or WPD high-risk inspection program
does not meet the eligibility requirements for TPDES storm water permit coverage, a self-
monitoring and reporting program will be established for the facility. The City does not
anticipate any changes to the monitoring programs. However, changes to the scope of the
program components may be considered during review of the City’s annual operating budget.
D. Water quality and Biological Monitoring
1. Barton Springs Complex Sediment Monitoring
The City’s ERM division of WPD will continue periodic sediment sampling of Barton
Springs and other associated spring outlets as well as sediment monitoring from the
contributing watersheds to the Barton Springs Zone. The monitoring will consist of quarterly
monitoring at Barton Springs; annual sampling of Eliza, Old Mill, and Upper Barton Springs,
where accumulations of sediment and flow conditions allow for collection. The type of
parameters to be analyzed will include metals, oil and grease, semi-volatile organics,
petroleum hydrocarbons, polychlorinated biphenyls and selected pesticides.
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2. Barton Springs Complex Water Quality Monitoring WPD will conduct a variety of ambient and storm water monitoring during the permit period,
Baseflow water quality sampling and Collection of benthic macro invertebrate data will be conducted on a semi-annual basis using the Environmental Integrity Index (EII).
Storm water monitoring at USGS-type stations along the mainstem of Barton Creek within the BSZ. Sites will be selected to characterize storm water influences and flow during storm events, a minimum of three sites will be sampled. The composite samples will be analyzed for nutrients, metals, field and physical parameters.
Intensive spring outlet and surface water sampling will continue at Barton Springs Pool. The frequency will be sufficient to identify trends that threaten this water resource in a timely manner. Sampling will occur at a minimum on a monthly basis and include analysis for nutrients and Total Suspended Solids (TSS).
Water quality sampling will be conducted at Barton Springs and at the other associated spring outlets on an annual basis. Samples will be analyzed for an extensive suite of parameters including metals, volatiles, semivolatiles, bacteria and selected pesticides and herbicides. Parameters approaching levels of concern or detected frequently enough that trends may be examined will be examined at a minimum biannually.
A data logger will be continually deployed (except for maintenance and data retrieval) at a cave at the bottom of Barton Springs Pool to collect basic physical parameters.
Periodic sediment sampling as may be determined necessary and appropriate.
3. Environmental Integrity Index (EII)
During the five year permit period, the Environmental Resource Management Division of the
WPD will continue to monitor and assess the ecological integrity and the degree of
impairment of creeks within the watersheds of the Barton Springs Zone (BSZ) using the
Environmental Integrity Index (EII). ERM staff will conduct EII assessments of the Onion
Creek, Barton Creek, Little Barton Creek, Williamson Creek, Slaughter Creek, Bear and
Little Bear Creek watersheds located within the Barton Springs Zone on a semi-annual
monitoring schedule.
The following six protection categories (sub-indices) are used in the EII:
Contact Recreation (Swimming/Wading) - The suitability of a water body for contact recreational use is evaluated using Escherichia coli bacteria concentration, which is an indicator of fecal contamination. Concentration numbers are converted to an index score relative to common State of Texas criteria for human health protection.
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Non-Contact Recreation/Aesthetic - The parameters included in the non-contact recreation field assessment include water surface appearance, litter, odor, clarity and percent algae cover. Scoring is primarily from visual assessment by trained staff.
Water Quality - Water quality subcomponents are calculated from chemical analysis of grab samples from all study sites during baseflow conditions.
Sediment Quality - Sediment sampling is also conducted at one site in each watershed located near the mouth. Scoring is from concentration data compared to local reference conditions for water and aquatic toxicity effects levels published for sediment.
Habitat Quality Index - Parameters used to measure habitat quality include instream cover, embeddedness, velocity/depth regimes, channel alteration, sediment deposition, frequency of riffles, channel flow status, condition of banks and riparian zone width. Scoring is from field measurements and visual assessment by trained staff.
Aquatic Life Support - Aquatic life support evaluates biological health using benthic macroinvertebrate and diatom community structure. Scoring is from biological indices calculated from taxonomic identification and compared to a reference condition.
Scores of the six sub-indices are averaged to obtain one EII score for each monitoring site.
EII scores range from 0 to 100 and are characterized by using the following eight ranges:
very bad (0-12), bad (13-25), poor (26-37), marginal (38-50), fair (51-62), good (63-75), very
good (76-87), and excellent (88-100). Overall watershed scores are determined by averaging
the site specific scores for all reaches within the watershed.
4. Critical Environmental Feature Protection
Critical Environmental Feature (CEF) is defined by COA Land Development Code, and
includes wetlands, springs, seeps, rim rocks, bluffs, sinkholes and caves. Protective buffers
from 150 feet to 300 feet are typically established to protect the character and function of
CEF during and after the development process. During the site development permit
application process, City of Austin staff review site plans for large-scale residential and
commercial development to ensure that critical environmental features are properly identified
and buffered from the development. These buffers are critical to maintaining the quality and
quantity of recharge to karst aquifers, maintaining the stability of vertical rock outcrops, and
maintain the water quality functions of wetlands. The number of CEF identified, and
protective CEF buffers established by COA staff will reported annually.